Argyll islanders get the hump over plan for traffic lights at historic bridge

Traffic lights are to be installed at the scenic Clachan Bridge on Scotland's wild Argyll coast despite fears it would be a "desecration" of a nationally significant heritage site.

- Carlton Reid

Known since the early 19th century as the "Bridge over the Atlantic", the 233-year-old crossing from the mainland to the Isle of Seil attracts many visitors eager to boast of their transoceanic journey. But there are concerns that traffic signals will lead to motorists acting aggressively towards pedestrians on what is a much-photographed landmark.

"There was no contact from the council," Sarah Nicholson, a fourth-generation islander, said. "We only found out about the plan when workmen started digging up the road."

Argyll and Bute council, headquartered 35 miles south in Lochgilphead, is spending at least £35,000 on the lights.

Clachan Bridge, built in 1792, is a signposted tourist attraction, with visitors often getting out of their cars and buses to walk across the structure over the narrow tidal channel that opens out into the north Atlantic.

The footway on the humpback bridge fades to almost nothing, leaving pedestrians to share the narrow road with motorists who currently negotiate the crossing carefully.