The A83 trunk road at the Rest and Be Thankful is an area prone to risk from natural landslides.
Safety for all road users is a primary concern of the Scottish Government. We appreciate the importance of the A83 route and understand the inconvenience caused by diversions.
Earlier this year we found that the hillside streams at Rest and Be Thankful were filled with sediment. A tilt meter on the hillside had also started flashing suggesting the land was unstable. Shortly after we closed the road for safety reasons.
Transport Scotland’s Trunk Road Operating Company confirmed that a slip had occurred further up the hillside but had not reached the road. It was estimated that approximately 30 to 50 Tonnes of material had slipped and a tension crack above showed signs of movement. Based on this information and the advice received from our expert geotechnical engineers regarding the risk of further landslides occurring, the road was closed.
The road has now reopened under temporary traffic lights.
Closure: 1 December 2011
Partially reopened: 3 December 2011
Reopened: 14 December 2011
A landslide at Rest and Be Thankful meant the road was fully closed for a short period while we removed the 120 tonnes of mud and boulders from the road surface. This initial clear up operation also included drain cleaning and installing a temporary concrete barrier.
Geotechnical engineers undertook a detailed survey of the hillside and discovered substantial tension cracks that suggested a far larger landslide may occur. The road was initially reopened to traffic in daylight hours and was fully reopened 24 hrs a day on the morning of 14 December.
Floodlighting installed along this section of road allows for night time monitoring and to improve driver safety.
Our preventative work
Scotland’s scenery - high mountains and steep valleys - can under periods of extended rainfall be prone to landslides. Though we cannot stop landslides occurring we work to manage the consequences effectively and keep everybody fully informed. 
Since the landslides at the Rest and Be Thankful in 2007 and 2009, we have invested approximately £700,000 in prevention and early warning systems including:
This landslide mitigation programme will continue and we will be investing approximately £500,000 per year across the network.
Tiltmeters
Tiltmeters provide an early visual indication of any movement of the Rest and Be Thankful hillside. They have also given us an increased ability to monitor the hillside in darkness.
There remain concerns about slope stability particularly during periods of heavy rain, and severe winds may de-stabilise equipment which has been installed. Should we find evidence of a landslide about to happen, then we may require to close part of or the full road to ensure the safety of all road users and roads personnel.
Due to the limited width of remaining road, this section is currently operated using traffic signal control. These arrangements will remain in place to allow further geotechnical monitoring of the hillside to assess movement and will allow for a quick response to events should they occur. The decision to remove the traffic signal control will be re-assessed after works to extend the debris flow netting has been installed.
Permanent monitoring equipment has now been installed in the areas of concern identified following the December landslide and debris flow netting will be installed between late May and late July. In addition we are continuing to explore the emergency diversion route options of upgrading the forest access road or, alternatively, bringing the Old Military Road back into use. Works are planned to be undertaken during the summer.
Meetings with local communities to explain the recent landslides, what we did and what we will do in the future were held at:
Lochgoilhead Village Hall - 21 February 2012
Ardrishaig Public Hall - 06 March 2012
Further meetings with other local communities will be arranged in the near future.
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