THE potential for road tunnels to connect Scottish islands to the mainland could be examined by the Scottish Government.
Transport Scotland has proposed carrying out detailed appraisals of tunnels linking parts of the Western Isles and Mull and the mainland.
The islands are currently served by ferries although Transport Scotland has said fixed links could improve reliability and connectivity but added that some islanders were concerned about increased traffic as a result.
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The appraisals were mentioned in Transport Scotland’s Islands Connectivity Plan, which has been put out for public consultation.
It proposed looking at tunnels for the following areas:
- Sound of Harris – linking Uist and Harris/Lewis
- Sound of Barra – linking Barra and Uist
- Mull and the Scottish mainland
Transport Scotland said a previous review had identified the potential for tunnels for some islands.
The agency said: “It concluded that replacing ferry services with fixed links can improve reliability, connectivity, capacity and travel times, and allow for the wider reconfiguration of ferry services.”
However, it did add that some living on the islands had concerns and that more detailed studies were needed.
Western Isles MP Angus MacNeil (below) is among supporters of the idea of road tunnels similar to those linking communities in the Faroe Islands.
We previously told how the building of tunnels to link two islands to the Shetland mainland was also being explored in a bid to help communities and the economy develop and move towards carbon neutrality.
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The Yell and Unst tunnel action groups previously published Subsea Tunnels – Are We Crazy? following a visit to the Faroe Islands to explore the impact the tunnel system had there.
The groups are investigating the possibility of connecting Unst and Yell to mainland Shetland through tunnels in Yell Sound and Bluemull Sound.
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