A riverside path in the shadow of Ben Nevis will become accessible to more people if plans to upgrade the route to make it suitable for all abilities are given the go ahead.
It is hoped this will increase the number of local people taking advantage of the facilities on their doorstep and encourage more tourists to visit the glen, which already welcomes many thousands of visitors every year.
Conservation group the Nevis Partnership has submitted a planning application for permission to improve the path alongside the River Nevis, near Glen Nevis Visitor Centre in Lochaber, to a standard that would make it suitable for wheelchairs.
The project forms part of a wider £500,000 Nevis Landscape Partnership project, with funding from Highland Council and the Heritage Lottery.
In a document submitted with the planning application, the partnership says: “The current riverside path is degraded, with rotten bridges spanning the burns, seriously eroded sections undercut from flood action, thin, muddy and uninviting, lacking in signage and/or orientation, uneven and full of trip hazards.
“It is suitable only for relatively fit people, who are able to deal with roots and overgrown vegetation, and even then presents significant risks to the user.
“It precludes use by most families, mobility impaired users and cyclists and it is not up to the standard of other paths in the area.”
The document states that Ben Nevis and Glen Nevis are nationally important resources for recreation and tourism, as well as providing a valuable community landscape.
It says: “This project, in conjunction with our new all-abilities bridge, which is currently in the design phase, will ensure that a ‘once in a lifetime’ visit to the UK’s highest mountain does not only welcome and provide for the fittest mountaineers.
“Families, the elderly, less fit and mobility impaired will be able to enjoy this landscape and engage in outdoor activity.”
It is hoped the new path, which would be 5ft to 6ft wide and barrier free, will be completed by February 2017.
A decision is still awaited on plans for a new 138ft single span steel bowstring arch bridge across the river, which forms part of a popular route up the Ben.
The Highland Council-owned visitor centre is also being upgraded and the Nevis Partnership has been granted planning permission to increase the number of spaces at Achintee car park from 25 to 55.
