Transport / SSEN admits to traffic light issue at Girlsta
TRAFFIC lights at Girlsta briefly stopped working on Tuesday morning, leaving drivers confused and coming face-to-face on the road.
It comes after reports of similar issues on the Dales Lees stretch of roads, with online commenters complaining that the lights there were “out of sync”.
On Tuesday morning there were complaints online again, this time about Girlsta, with one driver said to have met a bus head on.
SSEN Distribution admitted that there had been an issue with the lights in Girlsta on Tuesday, which it said had now been resolved.
“We’d like to thank road-users in the Girlsta area for their patience earlier this morning as our contract partner, OCU, worked to resolve a brief issue with their temporary traffic lights,” a spokesperson said.
“OCU was made aware of the issue shortly after 9:30am this morning and, following their prompt attention, the lights were operational again around 10:00am.”
Shetland Islands Council said its roads staff were aware of the issue, and had contacted the contractor on Tuesday to raise it with them.
On Sunday there were concerns about the traffic lights in Dales Lees, with some drivers saying on social media that they had been out of sync for several days.
SSEN Distribution is carrying out roadworks as part of its Shetland North reinforcement project, with the company saying last month the works were “essential”.
“Our contract partner, OCU, is delivering essential works which will provide long-term benefits to Shetland’s electricity network and the customers and communities who use it,” it had said.
“In spite of challenging weather, OCU continues to make good progress. We anticipate that work at the four sites where upgrades are underway will be complete by early summer.
“We’d like to thank road users for their patience and understanding while we carry out these essential upgrades.”
The project will see the installation of two new high voltage distribution cables between the Gremista grid supply point in Lerwick and the North Mainland.
With a focus on installing cabling in public roads, the project will ultimately allow Sullom Voe Terminal to connect to the grid to receive power.
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