A major electricity upgrade in the north-west Highlands could leave drivers facing an 80-mile road diversion over the winter months.
SSEN Transmission is managing plans to bring a renewable energy cable from the Western Isles ashore at Dundonnell but part of the project will involve closing a three-mile stretch of the A832.
Residents have launched a petition against the closure – which covers part of the North Coast 500 – over claims it would have a heavily detrimental impact on local services.
A spokesperson for SSEN Transmission said the firm was “actively considering” feedback from the community and is working “on solutions to minimise the impact of the closure”.
The project, which will see renewable power generated in the Western Isles fed into the National Grid, involves running a cable underground between Dundonnell and Beauly.
Part of the work will involve closing the A832 for 14 hours every day between 07:00 and 21:00 in two blocks from 27 October to mid-December and then again from January to March 2026.
SSEN has proposed three daily periods of “amnesty” on the road during that time, from 08:00 – 08:45, 12:30 – 13:30 and 16:30 – 17:30.
But Lisa Stewart, who lives in nearby Badcaul, said that was not enough and would leave the community “worried and anxious” to get to medical appointments.
“This is already a fragile community and isolated and this will make it more so,” she said.
“It is going to seriously impact and affect people’s ability to go to health appointments, to vet appointments, deliveries, everyday life in general.
“To plan these works during the dark winter months is just ridiculous and while we welcome the encouraging words from the SSEN, what we really need is meaningful, impactful action so that daily life can function and the community is not crippled.”
Trish Stevens, owner of the Dundonnell Hotel, said she feared the works would drive away visitors arriving to travel on the NC500 route.
She said the notice period for the works was not long enough for local people to make alternative arrangements, leaving many “anxious, stressed and worried”.
She said: “It could mean the difference between us actually surviving or not.
“It may require me to go to the bank and ask for a loan, which I don’t want to do, unless SSEN can come with a revised plan.
“Local people are feeling that they are being ignored, that their viewpoints are being ignored and the notice that we have been given has not been long enough.”
SNP MSP Maree Todd said the proposed diversion covered much higher ground, which could be badly affected by the winter conditions.
She said SSEN’s plans needed a “rethink”.
“What is being proposed is really unworkable for the community that is living there,” she said.
“The road will only be open three times a day. If people miss that, they have hours to wait before they can use the road.
“They {SSEN} need to listen carefully to the community and see if there is not a better solution than the one they have come up with.”
‘Difficult terrain’
Niall MacLeod, SSEN Transmission project director, said the “terrain, topography and space constraints” of the road made the road closure difficult to manage.
He said they were working to “minimise the impact” of the proposed closure.
Mr MacLeod added: “We would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to provide feedback to date, which we are actively considering.
“We are fully committed to ongoing engagement with road users, local communities and stakeholders as we develop our proposals, and we are working on solutions to minimise the impact of the proposed temporary closure in direct response to the feedback we have received so far.”