Bussiness
Waist-deep Highland potholes are sinking my bus tour business – BBC News
Image source, Mike Merritt
A bus tour operator claims his business is being sunk by waist-deep potholes at remote Cape Wrath in the Highlands.
Stuart Ross has had to cancel all his bookings until the end of the high season in June because of the state of the U70 road in Sutherland.
The route runs through a Ministry of Defence bombing range, with one local councillor saying it looks like the MoD “has missed its targets”.
Mr Ross, who says he has spent more than £60,000 on his business in the past two years, is now demanding compensation from Highland Council.
He said: “I have ploughed a lot of money into my business and now I cannot operate.
“We were promised by the council that the road would get fixed but it hasn’t been.
“There are some potholes that are waist deep – you just could not drive with passengers over several sections of that road. It is horrendous.”
Mr Ross operates four 16-seater buses on his Cape Wrath Mini Bus service, which carry about 5,000 passengers over the course of a season.
He says he first pointed out the issue to the council in February following prolonged storms which made the condition of the road worse.
Highland councillor Hugh Morrison, who owns a hotel in nearby Durness, said he received assurances on Monday from the council that repairs would be carried out soon.
“But it still will take weeks to repair and people are suffering,” he said.
“Some of these potholes must be among the worst and deepest in the country. It looks like the MoD missed their bombing target, it’s that bad.
“Many people come to Durness just to visit Cape Wrath so it is also affecting the B&Bs and other businesses too. The storms caused terrible damage, but this has been going on for too long.”
Highland Council said it was aware of the poor condition of the road and was working towards a temporary solution for the summer tourist season.
A spokesperson said: “It is a challenging location to deliver road repairs and maintenance using traditional methods and the council is therefore exploring alternatives for effecting longer term repairs.”
Image source, Mike Merritt
There was once a full-time community of around 35 people living on Cape Wrath in the 1930s.
However, in recent years the military has increased its use of the cape – with the installation of three new major gun battery sites.
The military usually shell from the land at the Faraid Head peninsula – opposite the cape at Durness – and often to Garvie Island.
Cape Wrath was previously estimated to be worth more than £600,000 to the nearby Durness economy.
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