Critical road re-surfacing works on Islay, on the on the B847 south of Port Mhor, will start on 5 October, weather permitting.
This work will be carried out using traditional hot bitumen macadam materials, brought over on the CalMac ferry.
Over the last few years, there have been challenges in transporting hot bitumen macadam onto Islay. To overcome this, the Council has worked alongside specialist bitumen companies to produce a modern deferred set or ‘cold mix’ macadam that can be manufactured in bulk and used over a longer period from initial mixing.
This paved the way to agree the logistics of getting a large amount of this material onto our islands in a short period by ship. This was done successfully on Jura, over the summer, and the intention had been to use the new materials that allow more work to be done, in a shorter period of time, on Islay.
However, the ship was taken to dry dock for repairs and recent updates confirm that it is not available for use in September, due to repairs lasting longer than expected.
This particular ship has an on-deck crane which is required for off-loading materials onto our smaller piers. It is currently also used for delivering salt stocks for winter gritting. It is the only ship of its type available for hire. It is unfortunate that all the planning to support our island community has not been achieved. However, this highlights another of the challenges of delivering services to island and remote rural communities.
Officers will revisit the deferred set with the ship owners and look to plan this into next year’s capital programme.
To maximise safety and efficiency when work begins on the B847, traffic management arrangements will be put in place. The single-track road will be closed with scheduled amnesty times. These will be:
- Before 09:00 - road open
- 09:00-12:00 – road closed
- 12:00-12:30 - road open and a bus service may be in operation
- 12:30-16:00 – road closed
- 16:00-16:30 - road open and bus service (school transport) will be in operation.
- 16:30-19:00 - road closed
- After - 19:00 - road open.
There will also be a diversion route along the C16/Uc42 Port Charlotte, Kilchiaran, Portnahaven roads. Drivers are advised to allow additional time for journeys.
Primary school pupil transport from Port Charlotte to Portnahaven in the afternoon will travel via Kilchiaran.
Access to Port Mhor will be available while surfacing is south of their access. As surfacing past the access up to Port Charlotte is at the end of the site, we can't confirm when this will occur at this time.
Councillor John Armour, Policy Lead for Roads, Transport and Amenity Services, said: “It is very disappointing that we are unable to deliver the larger scale roadworks at this time. However, we have a window of opportunity to carry undertake the most critical work on the Islay network, which dovetails with ferry availability for the hot bitumen lorries. The work carried out already this year on Jura indicates that we are in a position to move forward early next year with large-scale works on Islay.”
