A83 road closure

[Jock Strap]

John - perhaps you have the right contacts or know someone who has but can you tell whoever is responsible for opening and closing the road to get some kind of information at the Tarbet end for motorists?

Travelled down the road on Friday night unaware of the road opening again - there was no prior suggestion of this either - and followed the diversion signs at Tarbet round Crianlarich to Dalmally and onto Inveraray to be greeted by a huge digial board at Inveraray tell drivers the road was open!

Can't begin to say how furious I was.

[knock]

It was the same that day they opened the road for one day. As you approached Tarbet there were signs saying the road was closed. Immediately at Tarbet there was a small road open sign. Lots of drivers turned off and went the long road. It was only because we had phoned the police and they announced it on the radio that I kept going. Road was really quiet though!!!

[John S]

John - perhaps you have the right contacts or know someone who has but can you tell whoever is responsible for opening and closing the road to get some kind of information at the Tarbet end for motorists?

Travelled down the road on Friday night unaware of the road opening again - there was no prior suggestion of this either - and followed the diversion signs at Tarbet round Crianlarich to Dalmally and onto Inveraray to be greeted by a huge digial board at Inveraray tell drivers the road was open!

Can't begin to say how furious I was.

Thanks Jock, have passed this on.

[elaine]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... oad110.xml

[jdcarra]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/10/nroad110.xml

Your still half asleep Elaine, Mary G posted on Saturday .

[John S]

Scotland TranServ


A83 Landslip Rest and be Thankful

The closures of the A83 planned for Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th November will NOT take place. The A83 will remain open with single lane working controlled by temporary traffic lights.

The 24/48 hour closure for further works on the upper slopes of the landslip site will take place as soon as possible, weather permitting, and the associated road closures will be announced in advance.

Scotland TranServ is continuing to have a presence at the location on a 24 hour basis until further notice.

[elaine]

oh aye just looked the date on my google alert

[LO]

This is a very good piece written by Alan Cochrane, a first class journalist who says it as he sees it, in my view. I like his writing ... not much else in that paper for me!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/10/nroad110.xml

Alan's piece would have carried more impact if the road had not re-opened prior to its publication.
Perhaps this was why they disabled the "Comments" option on The Telegraph site?
Strikes me that he knows as much about the area as the politicians that he pours scorn on.
The words pot and kettle come to mind .........

I must say I am a bit taken aback by Mary G's endorsement of Mr Cochrane's journalism. He is of course a clever fellow. However, as far as I can see, he is paid to act the part of an over-blown pantomime villain. Much of what he says is bluster for bluster's sake and I wouldn't be at all surprised to learn that he sits at his keyboard every day with his tongue firmly wedged in his cheek.

[John A]

Alan's piece would have carried more impact if the road had not re-opened prior to its publication.
Perhaps this was why they disabled the "Comments" option on The Telegraph site?
Strikes me that he knows as much about the area as the politicians that he pours scorn on.
The words pot and kettle come to mind .........

.

Well said Les I could not agree more, exactly what I thought when I read the article.

[ionnsaigh]

The point isn't about the journalist . It is completely irrelevant to the facts. Facts that remain uncontaminated by either artistic leaning or propaganda - wither the Telegraph is a good paper or not - cuts little ice -when determining - harsh concrete cold historical fact. no more no less.
What I found interesting in the article was the ramblings of a tory. Who mentioned three areas - Inverery - excuse me iv'e forgotten the other Two. All I know is that Southern Kintyre never got a mention - Campbeltown no more - Carradale no more.
Where I sympathise with the people of these areas - they would surely agree that - at least in terms of population numbers - that they have been elevated to a position that falsely contradicts - conditions on the ground.
Businesses that truly reap the benefits - are much more - able to absorb the economic shock waves - than the wee shop at the street corner - completely dependent on daily supplies of bread and milk coming from afar.
Give me bread and milk any day - oysters are special occasion - surely.

[ionnsaigh]

PS
It wouldn't surprise me one bit - if the said tory - had important friends in these areas.

[John S]

Latest update from Transerve.

The planned essential ongoing work on the landslip site on the A83 Rest and be Thankful site is now scheduled for Wednesday 14th November and Thursday 15th November 2007.

The work which will involve the closure of the A83 from 0800 on Wednesday 14th November, is scheduled to take a maximum of 48 hours.

Diversion routes will be sign-posted.

As always, the work at this site is weather dependent, however, indications are that a suitable weather window exists.

Scotland TranServ will do its utmost to minimise the length of time the A83 is closed. Further updates will follow regarding progress once work gets underway.

The Traffic Scotland website will be regularly updated www.trafficscotland.org

[Mary G]

Technicalities first: Some newspapers disable the comments section on many more of their articles on Saturdays, presumably when they have fewer staff moderating to manage the invective that is regularly posted in the comments section (and that is another topic altogether!). But you give the Telegraph way too much credit if you think that it disabled the comments section on that article precisely because the road re-opened!

On the man and his writing: Enjoying reading what someone writes is certainly not the same as agreeing with every sentiment that they commit to paper! It would surely be a sad world if we all only read writers whose views were identical to our own, and who therefore gave sustenance to every opinion we held, so never challenging any misconception (or prejudice) that we espoused. So, I find Cochranes’s forthright style (and that of many others) much more readable than a lot of what passes for political comment in the Herald and Scotsman nowadays, writing that is often bitter, sometimes craven, and usually self-obsessed. I like to read any writer who speaks authentically, and Cochrane manages this – albeit I disagree with him heartily on many occasions.

As for this article: One thing that I particularly liked was that he articulated well the sense of isolation that can endure when the road is closed, and the feelings that can prevail at such times. [And he did mention Campbeltown, ionnsaigh ... homework for you!] Some wee touches, like the impact of the “Rest and be Thankful” name on the wider world, were also good. As for the political knock-about? That is no more or less than I would expect! And you are all mature enough to know to expect that sort of writing by any political correspondent. Doesn’t mean I buy any of it...

This is a news thread - not one in Speaker's Corner - however, the comments posted warranted a response from me.

Anyone know if the work is taking place today?

[Mary G]

Thanks John S - in the time I took to draft my post you had answered the question I posed at the end! M

[John S]

Glad to be of service Mary G.