Public Road Is Closed For Six Weeks

No temporary bridge means a 28-mile detour for motorists

MOTORISTS HAVE been left angry and frustrated by a recent phase of repairs to the B871 between Syre, in Strathnaver, and Kinbrace, with at least one driver narrowly missing costly damage to her car suspension after coming on a dug-up section of carriageway unawares. A section of the B871, between Syre and Kinbrace, has been closed to traffic for six weeks as of Monday, October 23, with the closure expected to last until December 1. Road users were given a weekend’s notice of the impending closure via a notice in the Northern Times, dated October 18.

During the resurfacing phase of the work, dancing instructor Jan Trumble, who lives at Brora, was travelling to Farr High School to assist with a project. She described the unpleasant adventure which ensued after she joined the B871 at Kinbrace. “At the beginning of the road, just past Kinbrace Station, there was a sign saying ‘road works’ but there were none for miles and miles so I thought they must have finished”, Ms Trumble said. “I came round a bend and half the road was missing: they had scraped the road right back and there were no signs or cones or anything. My car hit it and I heard the bottom of the car hit the bit of the road that wasn’t scraped. After a few minutes I became aware that something was wrong so stopped to find my tyre almost shredded. I tried to put the spare on but couldn’t get the car high enough.”