Cash to cut congestion at Skye tourism hotspots
Top tourist sites on Skye have been given £300,000 to help ease parking problems.
The Fairy Pools will receive £200,000 in from the Highland Leader programme while £100,000 of Scottish Government funds have been announced for the Quiraing.
The cash will go towards car parks at both sites after high tourist traffic in summer caused tailbacks and parking problems.
AMAZING SKYE NEWS: Funding has been secured to expand the carpark at the Fairy Pools @Notjustacarpark and the Quiraing...in time for the tourist season! Hats off to local members, officials & councillors for collaboration. #massiveWINpic.twitter.com/EgxkxFqpce
-- Kate Forbes MSP (@KateForbesMSP) February 26, 2018
At the Fairy Pools, a series of waterfalls and pools in Glen Brittle which attracts more than 100,000 visitors a year, plans are in place to expand the existing 35-space car park to take 100 cars and around 20 mini-buses.
The car park proposed for the Quiraing, an area of unusual land formations formed by an ancient landslip on the Trotternish peninsula, will have 60 spaces for cars as well as places for small coaches and motorhomes.
Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch MSP Kate Forbes said the funding marks a "significant step forward".
She said: "After many meetings and announcements, I am pleased that we are finally seeing tangible funding to improve parking at the Fairy Pools and the Quiraing.
"I know that warm words and sympathy actually achieve nothing on the ground, but cold, hard cash will develop additional parking, improve the visitor experience and make it easier for locals."
@HighlandCouncil are delighted that funding packages are in place to improve parking at two top tourist sites on the Isle of Skye.https://t.co/1lJSW7BFl3pic.twitter.com/g1wKbU75en
-- The Highland Council (@HighlandCouncil) February 26, 2018
Tourism Secretary Fiona Hyslop welcomed the funding announcement.
She added: "When I visited Skye last November, I met local groups to hear first-hand about the challenges caused by the increasing visitor numbers to the iconic tourist sites that the island has to offer."
Highland Council earlier announced it will contribute £100,000 for infrastructure upgrades to the Fairy Pools and £90,000 to the Quiraing.