Transport / Dales Lees road to be closed to larger HGVs in next phase of cabling work
THERE stands to be more disruption on the A968 Dales Lees road over the coming months – this time for large HGVs.
To allow for more SSEN cabling work, Shetland Islands Council has issued a temporary traffic regulation order prohibiting vehicles weighing more than 7.5 tonnes.
This will run from 8am today (Monday) to 5pm on Friday 29 May, covering 3.5km from the Collafirth junction north to Dalesview.
It means large HGVs will have to divert through Brae, causing a longer journey for those vehicles heading to the Toft ferry terminal for onward travel to Yell and Unst for example. All other traffic will be able to pass through the Dales Lees road.
It forms part of SSEN Distribution’s Shetland North Reinforcement project, which involves the installation of two new 43km underground cables between Sullom Voe and Gremista.
A spokesperson for Shetland Islands Council said this time there is sufficient width to allow most vehicles to pass while work is ongoing, although there may be some delays.
“This work is to facilitate the next phase of SSEN’s works in the Dales Lees road (A968),” they said.
“This time, instead of a temporary road closure for all road vehicles it will only be closed to larger HGVs. There is sufficient road width in the affected sections to allow safe working if HGVs are directed to an alternative route via Brae.
“The road will be open for most road users, although two way lights will be in operation with convoy working on occasions, that may cause some delays.”
In November SSEN Distribution announced that all cabling in the Shetland North project would now take place in public roads to make the work able to be completed more quickly, and with less impact on the environment.
Speaking earlier this month, Shetland North councillor Andrew Hall said the community was “rightly disappointed and annoyed” by this news.
“As a community we have already experienced a great deal of inconvenience due to the cabling work on our roads, which will continue for much longer than originally planned,” he said.
With more traffic set to come through Brae, Hall has formally requested that SSEN Distribution donates three permanent ‘smiley face’ speed signs for the three main entrances to Brae, at a cost of around £25,000.
Temporary smiley face signs, which show drivers what their speed is, were put up in Brae during last year’s full Dales Lees closure.
Hall said he has yet to receive a formal response from SSEN Distribution regarding his request for permanent smiley face signs.
But he said the SIC installed a couple of temporary smiley face signs in Brae earlier this month, “in an attempt to help address the increased volume of traffic passing through the area by encouraging drivers to be more aware of their speed”.
“Previous experience indicates that these signs are effective in encouraging drivers to slow down when entering Brae,” Hall added.
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