Year 3, Week 13

Highland Campervan & Motorhome Scheme, A939 40mph limit, Road closures ...

Highland Campervan & Motorhome Scheme

For a long while now we’ve had an uneasy relationship with campervans and motorhomes here in Nairn but the recent introduction of the Highland Campervan and Motorhome Scheme has made things significantly worse.

It offers free overnight parking at sites across Highland, including Nairn harbour and also access to the showers at High Life Highland centres including Nairn’s Leisure Centre for a week in return for a payment of only £40.

As a result we now have significantly more vans fighting for places in the harbour car park and the Leisure Centre car park is full of vans using the facilities, to the detriment of residents.

In addition a less obvious issue is that previously the Common Good Fund was taking £10 a night via “invitation to pay” off vans using the harbour car park, which we’re not now, so the town is losing money there.

I know from talking to other councillors that the Scheme is causing problems all across Highland, not just in Nairn and you'll see stories about it both in the local and national press, not to mention the usual hue and cry on social media.

I and my fellow councillors are acutely aware of the chaos this is causing and we had an ad hoc meeting on Wednesday to discuss it and it was discussed again with residents at another on Thursday.

The four of us are now writing to the senior officer who is in charge of this scheme pointing our concerns and I will also be discussing it further at meetings next week.

A939 40mph limit

We have a proposal coming to the Nairnshire Area Committee on Monday to put a 40mph speed limit on a section of the A939 Grantown Road coming into Nairn which is currently at the national speed limit, so 60mph. The section proposing is shown in pink on the map below.

My view is that this doesn’t go far enough: I’d like to see the 40mph limit extended out down the A939 past the next corner, which has that fearsome wall on the west side and makes interactions with the likes of timber trucks coming the other way around the bend … interesting.

I’d also like to see the section into Nairn, in light blue, reduced to 20mph as that would help with some safety issues of that stretch and make it consistent with the rest of Nairn but whether that will be possible this time I’m less sure.

Road closures

I have been notified of a number of road closures in the first half of August. Local diversions will be in place for each but if you need more information then do contact me:

• Overnight Saturday 10th to Sunday 11th August - B9090 Cawdor Street closed under the railway bridge (inspection of bridge)

• Monday 12th to Wednesday 14th August, 8am to 5pm each day - C1154 from Newlands of Inchnacaorach via Clunas and Dulsie to A939 at Aitnoch (resurfacing)

• Monday 12th August onwards (potentially until Friday, 20th September) - C1171 east of Auldearn (BT works)

• Thursday, 15th August, 9:30am to 3:30pm - short section of B9091 between Nairn and Clephanton (BT works)

Marine Road

The double yellow lines have, finally, been painted all the way along the road!

Planning applications

The following new applications were logged since I last posted:

• 24/03135/FUL - Clerks Acre, Lodgehill Road, Nairn, IV12 4SZ - Erection of extension

To find details search on the reference number on the planning portal where you can also find details on how to comment.