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New A82 Road

The Scotsman, June 3, 1933.

HIGHLAND HIGHWAY

The Glasgow – Inverness Road.

COMPLETION IN SEPTEMBER

Road-making in the Highlands is popularly, and very properly, associated with the activities, of General Wade and his soldiers, hut during the past ten years developments have taken place which deserve to rank alongside the pioneering efforts of Wade and his men. Ten years ago, when road transport first showed signs of development on a large scale, the Highlands had no roadways to the South of any consequence. The so-called "first-class roads" were first-class only in importance; their construction and their condition ill fitted them for the demands of modern traffic, and it was recognised that they had served their day and generation. Then came for the Highlands what may be described as the era of the great arterial road and the first of two great road undertakings was embarked upon - the construction of a modern highway between Perth and Inverness. The Perth road was successfully completed, to the immeasurable benefit of the Highlands, and this year will witness the completion of the second of these undertakings, the great new road from Glasgow to Inverness, which will pass through some of the loveliest scenery which Scotland has to offer, and along a country-side imperishably associated with Scottish and Highland history.

AN ENGINEERING ACHIEVEMENT

It was three years ago, in March of 1930, that operations began on the Glasgow-Inverness road, and when the work is finished in September of this year one of the greatest achievements in road engineering in Scotland, or for that matter. Britain, will have been accomplished. Some idea of the vastness of the work and of the engineering difficulties which had to be overcome may be afforded by the fact that in a single section of the road extending to only eight miles no less than 270,000 cubic yards of solid rock had to be removed. Cuttings in the rock had to be executed in some instances to a height of 80 feet on the cliff-side. Each week something like 17,500 cubic yards of material had to be excavated, and of that 5700 cubic yards wore from solid rock. The heaviest excavation of rock took place along the shore of Loch Ness, particularly between Invermoriston and Achnahannet, but the mountain of labour has not been in vain, for thereby one of the narrowest and most dangerous roadways in Britain has been turned into a modern motoring highway through the Great Glen of Scotland, with a vista of loch and mountain unrivalled anywhere.

LOW COST OF CONSTRUCTION

A sum of about £900,000 is estimated to be the total cost of the 80 miles of new road from North Ballachulish to Inverness. The cost per mile works out at £13,000, which, considering that it includes bridges, lands compensation, and administrative charges, is a very low figure. As many as 1200 men have been engaged on the work at one time, but now, with the end in sight, the number is not quite so large. From Ballachulish to Fort-Augustus the road is completed, surfacing there having been finished some time ago. For the next 24 miles, from Fort-Augustus to Brachla, in Glen Urquhart, surfacing is being rapidly executed at the rate of one and a half mile per week. The only part of the road which is as yet untouched is the stretch of four and a half miles from Brachla to Dochfour, on the outskirts of the town of Inverness, but this week tenders were taken for that last section. Along Loch Ness side, it is perhaps worth mentioning, parking places for motor cars have been ingeniously worked into the route-way and attractive rockery walls erected. Thus beauty and utility have been happily combined.

The Ministry of Transport and Inverness County Council have been responsible for the operations in Inverness-shire stretching from North Ballachulish to Inverness, and the new road has been designed by Major Robert Bruce, M.Inst.C.E.. who from his headquarters at Inverness has had the entire work under his supervision. Major Bruce was also the chief engineer of the Perth-Inverness road, Mr Charley Tinker, of Kilmartin, acted as chairman of the Road Sub-Committee appointed by Inverness County Council in connection with the reconstruction, and he has had many important duties to perform. The contractors for the first six sections of the road were as follow:

Section 1—North Ballachulish to Fort-William— 12 miles. Contractors—Messrs the Alston Limestone Co. (Ltd.), Newcastle.
Section 2—Fort-William to Invergloy—14 miles. Contractor—Mr J. M: Broadfoot. Newport.
Section 3—Laggan Bridge to Fort-Augustus-9 miles. Contractors—Messrs Jack, Son & Co. (Ltd.), Glasgow.
Section 4—Fort-Augustus to Invermoriston—8 miles. Contractors—Messrs Jack, Son & Co. (Ltd.), Glasgow.
Section 5—Invermoriston to Achnahannet—8 miles. Contractors—Messrs William Tawse (Ltd.). Aberdeen.
Section 6—Achnahannet to Brachla—8 miles, Contractor – Mr A. M. Carmichael, Edinburgh.

BRIDGE BUILDING

Perhaps the immensity of the reconstruction it best conveyed by the bridge building which has been found necessary. No fewer than fifty-five bridges along the route have had to be reconstructed; some of them were, widened and made to fulfil modern requirements, but in the majority of cases an entirely new structure had to be substituted. All hut three of these fifty-five road bridges have now been constructed, the exceptions being the bridges at Borlum, Invermoriston, and Fort-Augustus. The Borlum and Invermoriston bridges will be finished in August, and the Fort-Augustus bridge, a very largo one, will be completed in the spring of next year. Great care has been taken to ensure that aesthetically the bridges will conform with the natural surroundings, which vary very much along the route.
Major Bruce, the. engineer-in-chief, designed the bridges, and in the case of the larger structures Messrs Blyth & Blyth, consulting engineers, Edinburgh, and Messrs Mears & Caus-Wilson, consulting architects, Edinburgh, collaborated with him in the preparation of the designs. Close touch was kept with the Society for the Preservation of Rural Scotland, who gave their approval of the designs adopted.

Apart from the fifty five road bridges, three double-way structures have been built over the Caledonian Canal, at Laggan. Aberchalder, and Fort-Augustus respectively. These bridges have been constructed by Sir William Arrol and Co. (Ltd.), Glasgow, who were also responsible for the designs in collaboration with Mr Eustace Porter, M.Inst.C.E., engineer and manager of the Caledonian Canal.

The erection of the smaller road bridges was included in the different sectional contracts for the road, hut in the case of nine larger bridges separate contracts were secured. the builders of the larger bridges were:

Invergarry Bridge. Contractors—Messrs Jack, Son & Co. (Ltd.), Glasgow.
Oich Bridge. Contractors—Messrs Melville, Dundas & Whitson, Glasgow.
Spean and Invergloy Bridges. Contractors-Messrs E. Henderson & Son (Ltd.),- Newcastle.
Kiachnish and Nevis Bridges. Contractors-Messrs Matthew Muir & Co. (Ltd.), Kilmarnock,
Drumnadrochit Bridge. Contractor—Mr A. M. Carmichael, Edinburgh. . .
Fort-Augustus and Invermoriston Bridges. Contractors—Messrs Melville, Dundas & Whitson, Glasgow.

From the construction of the now road to Glasgow the Highlands expect to derive considerable advantages. Two groat roadways henceforward will connect the North and South of Scotland, to the benefit of both, and the improved transport should play an important part in the future development and prosperity of the Highlands.
Pictures on Page 20