Highland Council apologises for noise from work on Inverness road project at Caledonian Canal over Christmas and New Year
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
REPORTS of bangs and bumps in the night were all part of a plan to bring works on the Caledonian Canal up to date.
Residents in Inverness who had been complaining about the noise of machinery and loud contractor works to the south and west of the city over the festive period should only have to wait until the end of this week until the noise from a piling machine comes to an end.
Contractors worked over Christmas and New Year to bring a canal project up to date, after it fell behind due to "significantly more fish having to be removed" from the canal and mitigating the effects of an invasive plant species.
Residents had complained of loud bangs and late-night noise in the area around the canal at Tomnahurich bridge and further afield. With one woman asking: "Do these workers not have homes to go to?"
A council spokesman said: "The Inverness West Link stage two works have now progressed to inside the canal and the completion of this section of the works is crucial to the success of the project."
The stage two works were started in May 2019 and construction is due to continue through to December 2020. They will provide an additional swing bridge over the canal which will mean fewer delays from the bridge opening to allow canal traffic to pass. The two bridges will work in tandem to make sure one route is always available to traffic.
“The Caledonian Canal is at present drained over a short length close to the Tomnahurich bridge," said the spokesman. "Piling works are ongoing, however due to a combination of various unforeseen circumstances in December the works fell eight days behind programme.
"The issues faced are obstructions to piling, significantly more fish having to be removed from the drained section than expected and an invasive species of plant that required action.
“It is traditional that the construction industry closes for a two-week period over the festive period. However, this year it was decided that work would continue to try and get the project back on programme regarding piling works, with only the statutory public holidays being taken at Christmas and New Year.
“The Highland Council and the contractor RJ McLeod took this decision to continue the works to help mitigate against any delay regarding the Caledonian Canal reopening in March.
"Piling in the canal took place over seven days during the festive period and as a result of this proactive approach the contractor is now back on programme with piling expected to be complete by the end of this week.
“The Highland Council would like to apologise for any disturbance caused by these works, especially when many people were on holiday, but hope that those affected will appreciate that all other options were considered prior to work being undertaken at this time.”
