News / SIC bans giant runway rock trucks
LARGE trucks carrying huge boulders to repair the airport runway at Sumburgh have been wrecking the main road in Shetland’s south mainland.
The situation has got so bad that this weekend Shetland Islands Council is imposing an 18 month ban on vehicles more than 2.6 metres wide between Levenwick and Robin’s Brae.
Local residents are up in arms about the constant stream of low loader lorries, warning that they will cause a fatal accident unless something is done.
Highlands and Islands Airports Limited were initially transporting rock armouring to the east end of the runway by sea to complete the £12 million repair contract.
However unspecified technical issues have forced the state-owned agency to carry the latest shipments to Sumburgh via road for the past month.
Last week local councillor Allison Duncan raised concerns about the round the clock procession of juggernauts that have been churning up the verges.
The A970 between Levenwick and Robin’s Brae, just north of the airport, is the narrowest part of Shetland’s main spinal route and unable to accommodate the size of vehicle transporting one and sometimes two boulders, each weighing around 25 tonnes.
Duncan said that he had been inundated with calls from concerned constituents saying there could be a serious accident unless something was done soon.
The road passing the north Levenwick junction is particularly dangerous as it is both narrow and has no crash barrier, so if a lorry driver made a misjudgment it could have serious consequences.
“A vehicle could go off the road down that steep embankment because there are areas there where there is no protection,” Duncan said.
“And with two stones on one of those low loaders you are talking about 50 tonnes of rock which could cause the loss of human life, it could hit a house, or livestock or the driver could be killed.”
With the verges deteriorating lorry drivers have been crossing the white line to get past this narrow section, endangering traffic coming in the opposite direction, he added.
Duncan took the matter up with environment and transport committee chairman Allan Wishart and area commander chief inspector Angus MacInnes.
Now the SIC’s roads department has issued a temporary traffic regulation order banning any vehicle more than 2.6 metres wide from the road between Levenwick and Robin’s Brae.
SIC roads engineer Neil Robertson said the order would be enforced on Saturday and could be maintained for 18 months, by which time the repair work should be completed.
Robertson said that the roadside damage was “not huge yet”, but was likely to get worse with the winter weather.
“The verge is being torn up and there are cracks showing on the carriageway,” he said.
Council officials met with the transport companies involved in the work which is being carried out by Northern Irish firm McLaughlin and Harvey, with transport firm Gills carrying the large rocks.
Duncan said on Thursday night that he was very relieved that steps were being taken before anyone was hurt.
“We can only hope that there is no structural damage because if there is it will cost a lot of money to repair,” he said.
The transport firms are expected to start using smaller trailers to carry one rock at a time.
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