Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Bridge of Allan high street roadworks ‘kick in the teeth’ to small businesses weeks before Christmas

Business owners say it "couldn't have come at a worse time".

Shop owners say they first learned about the roadworks when handed a letter from the council last week. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson
Shop owners say they first learned about the roadworks when handed a letter from the council last week. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson

Traders in Bridge of Allan have called disruptive roadworks in the run-up to Christmas a “kick in the teeth” for local businesses.

Stirling Council has announced road resurfacing on a half-mile stretch of Henderson Street, the town’s main thoroughfare, is due to start on Sunday, November 17.

Temporary traffic lights will be in operation from the Inverallan Road roundabout to Melville Place between 9am and 3.45pm each day.

The council says it expects the resurfacing to last between six and seven days, depending on the weather conditions.

In a letter handed to local businesses last week, the authority pledged to minimise the impact where possible and apologised for the inconvenience, but wrote: “It is unavoidable that the works will cause disruption to residents/businesses.”

However, Henderson Street business owners say the timing of the rescheduled roadworks – which were originally started and abandoned in spring this year – is particularly bad, and they were not consulted beforehand.

The stretch of road is around half a mile long, and the work is expected to take around a week to complete. Image: Stirling Council

Eric Ruhl, who owns furniture and interiors shop Nutshell, said: “It couldn’t have come at a worse time.

“We’re struggling. We really do struggle in Bridge of Allan.”

Mr Ruhl fears the work will take longer than the council expects, eating into the busy Christmas-shopping period.

“It’s a crucial time for a lot of people. It’s make or break,” he added.

The proprietor feels Stirling Council should have scheduled the resurfacing for January or February, and Lorraine Colville, owner of hair salon The Colour Lounge, agrees.

She said: “Why are they doing it now, when you’re going to get people Christmas shopping?”

Ms Colville is concerned that too much simultaneous disruption on the roads in and around Stirling will put customers off.

Nutshell’s owner Eric Ruhl said he shared his concerns with Stirling Council by email, but the resurfacing work had already been scheduled. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson

“It’s bad enough that I’ve got clients travelling from Alloa, who are now coming along the Causewayhead Road, stuck at traffic lights there,” she said.

“Every client is going to be at least 15 minutes late.

“Clients become frustrated. If they can’t get here and they’re having a stressful day, they turn around and they don’t come. So, the loss of business is horrendous.”

Jennifer and Steven Wilson, owners of Bridge of Allan Hardware, said: “It feels like a kick in the teeth to small businesses causing disruption this close to Christmas.

“There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the current economy, so this is the last thing independent businesses need just now.”

Hardware shop owners Steven and Jennifer Wilson are worried about the negative impact the disruption could have on small businesses. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson

Alexander Stewart MSP, who resides in Bridge of Allan, said: “I have been inundated with calls, emails and representation from many of the traders and residents who will be adversely affected.

“The business community have every right to be disgusted at this work.

“It will have a detrimental effect on their trade in the run up to Christmas and deliveries of merchandise will be disrupted.

“I have spoken to local councillors, who, like me, are very unhappy.

“It would appear, however, that senior officers in the council have no intention of changing their minds.”

‘Bridge of Allan is open for business’

A Stirling Council spokesperson said: “We have engaged positively with many businesses in the area and have provided timely updates in advance of the roadworks commencing.

“Prominent signage has been in place for three weeks and a number of local businesses have also told us they welcome the improvements as they will enhance the entrance to the village, particularly as residents and visitors approach from the north.

“We understand the impact on traffic that accompanies roadworks and we always endeavour to minimise the disruption felt by all concerned.

“We’re committed to carrying out these works as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

A build-up of traffic is inevitable while two or three-way temporary traffic lights are in place. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson

In a joint statement, Bridge of Allan councillors Alasdair Tollemache and Robin Kleinman said: “Whilst we understand the importance of the roadworks, doing it at this time of the year concerns us.

“We would urge visitors to visit Bridge of Allan during the roadworks. Henderson Street has many great local shops and businesses which offer so much to the visitor.

The Christmas light switch-on, on Saturday November 23, will not be affected, as no works will happen on that day.”

Henderson Street runs through the middle of Bridge of Allan and is also part of the A9 route. Image: Alex Watson/DC Thomson

Douglass Ross, owner of Allanwater Brewhouse and vice chair of Discover Bridge of Allan echoed the councillors’ message.

He said: “Bridge of Allan is open for business.

“Despite the roadworks that may be happening, there’s plenty of parking, there’s plenty of access.

“The shops are all open, and the town’s Christmas celebrations will not be affected.”


For more Stirling news and features visit our page or join us on Facebook

Conversation