A North Coast 500 (NC500) route will be closed for two days for filming, but the local community has hit out at the council for "not being consulted."
Applecross Community Council has criticised plans to close the Bealach na Bà road for almost two days in September to allow a drone to film cars, saying it was given no prior consultation and warning of the impact on residents, care staff and local businesses.
They claim Highland Council notified them on Monday evening of proposed road closure RC260018, which would shut the C1087 route over the Bealach to traffic for 46 hours across Saturday, September 12 and Sunday, September 13.
In a Facebook statement, the community council said the notification was the first it had heard of the proposal and described the notice as short notice during what remains a busy period for tourism in the area.
It said it had initially questioned whether the closure was linked to long-awaited road maintenance, including surface dressing or work to address deep drops at the road edges.
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However, it said the only reason given was to “allow a drone to film cars”.
The community council said: “Those sitting in offices in town seem to lack awareness of just how important the road over the Bealach is to the Applecross Community and local businesses.”
It added that Applecross currently has no petrol supply, while the diversion shown on Highland Council’s map would more than double the journey for people travelling between the peninsula and surrounding areas.
The group highlighted the potential effect on NHS care staff and workers travelling to Kishorn, as well as residents and businesses reliant on the route.
The Bealach na Bà is a key road link to Applecross, running between the A896 near Kishorn and the coast road, the C1091. Highland Council has previously said the coast road can be used as an alternative when the pass is closed, although it is a substantially longer route.
The community council also referred to a previous proposal to close the coast road for five days. It said work later appeared capable of being carried out with 45-minute delays over a single day, before ultimately being cancelled.
