The scale of investment needed to deliver essential services across waste, transport and infrastructure will be considered by Argyll and Bute Council’s Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee this week.
Managing the waste produced across Argyll and Bute alone requires a revenue budget of £19 million for 2026/27, alongside £3 million in capital investment and £1.5 million of Scottish Government support to meet new environmental requirements, including the ban on landfilling general black bag waste.
Public transport and school transport services require around £12 million, including approximately £9 million paid to external operators to provide 70 public bus routes across the region.
This funding also helps around 3,500 pupils travel to 78 schools safely each school day.
The committee will also hear that, although public toilets are not a statutory council duty, the council currently provides 57 facilities across Argyll and Bute at an annual operating cost of around half a million pounds.
Members will also consider progress on more than £100 million of externally funded regeneration and economic development projects, including major programmes such as the Rural Growth Deal and Community Regeneration Partnership funding, which are supporting housing, business growth, infrastructure and community facilities.
Councillor John Armour, Policy Lead for Roads, Transport and Amenity Services, said: “The committee’s agenda shows the scale and importance of the services the council delivers every day, from waste and transport to infrastructure and regeneration. These services are vital to our communities, but rising costs and ongoing budget pressures mean they are increasingly challenging to provide.
“Everyone can help reduce pressure on services. For example, processing a tonne of black bag waste costs more than £100 extra compared with processing a tonne of recycling, so please recycle as much as possible using the service available. Thank you for what you already do — and remember, additional blue recycling bins are free.”
Committee papers are available on the Council website.
