The A83 has reopened today following a major landslide at the Rest and Be Thankful, but it will close again this evening and will remain closed overnight.
The busy Tarbet to Campbeltown trunk road was closed Tuesday morning after thousands of tones of mud and rocks were washed onto the carriageway.
Since then, the Old Military Road (OMR) has been operating as a diversion while trunk road contractors Bear Scotland were working to clear the road.
It reopened under traffic management at around midday today and will close again at 5pm when the OMR will again be used as a diversion because the agency will be unable to monitor the hillside in the dark.
Following a further review of the road and weather conditions in the morning, it is expected that the OMR will be stood down and this section of the A83 at will reopen at 7.30am.
Chair of the A83 Marketing Group, Mike Story, said: “We are delighted that the A83 has reopened at the Rest and be Thankful today, despite this just being a temporary measure.
“The Old Military Road has provided Argyll and the Isles businesses with a safe route through the A83 landslip and ensured that Argyll has remained open for business.
“The 24-hour operation of the emergency route has meant that locals and visitors have avoided long detours and the Old Military Road worked well throughout the hours of darkness.
“In the best case scenario, travellers only added 15 minutes to their journey.”
He added that they group wished to thank the Bear team, which was working at heights of more 1,000ft in “the most atrocious weather and zero visibility”.
Mr Story said: “They have gone beyond their duty to remedy the situation.”
Transport Scotland’s head of network maintenance, Graham Edmond, said: “It’s been a very challenging week for all concerned – local residents, businesses and not least those working round the clock to get the road reopened in very testing conditions.
“I am pleased the road has reopened today and also that the Old Military Road has proven its worth.”
