Still waiting

When the bridge at Bailemore was damaged in the floods of October 7th 2023, a temporary bridge was put in place within a couple of months.   It took Argyll and Bute Council a bit longer than they had initially estimated, but that was understandable given the scale of the damage from that particular extreme weather event.

At that time the community were promised a new permanent bridge by April 2024.  That  prioritisation made sense as the  road is the main route from Bute and West Cowal to Dunoon .  In addition the Council are only  leasing the temporary structure , so they need to save money by removing it at the earliest possible opportunity.

April came and went.   There was then a promise to complete the bridge "by the end of the year".   In the autumn that became "by the end of the financial year" and in November the old bridge was taken down and crushed on site.

However on Monday  the ColGlen community council was informed  by one of the local councillors that there was now no firm or even speculative date for when the bridge would be replaced.    Apparently more "design work" is needed.

This endless moving of the goal posts is what gives local councils -a bad name.   Just tell people the truth and - in those memorable words of Jackie Stewart - under promise and over deliver.   

Not the opposite, which is what councillors, officials and Argyll & Bute Council as an institution has done (again) in this case.