Angus Council say a new £240,000 riverbank path between Kinnordy Loch and Kirriemuir will be fit for purpose when it finally opens.
But there’s no firm completion date for a project which is already a year overdue.
The new path stretches nearly a mile and a half from the Kinnordy RSPB reserve to Lochmill on the north of Kirrie.
And locals say some regular users have already been put off the idea of using it because the raised edges are too risky for wheelchairs or buggies.
They claim parts of the asphalt surface have broken up before it even re-opened.
Popular walk
Regular user Sharon Prentice said: “This is a lovely woodland walk and we were told it would be re-done so it could be safely accessed by all users.
“It’s taken an age to do, there’s no end in sight and it’s just not safe for what it was designed for.
“It’s not wide enough for wheelchairs and they are having to put in passing places.
“And the gradients on some parts are far too steep for wheelchair users under Disability Access Code guidelines.
“In the winter it will be like an ice rink and it won’t be gritted.
“They said it won’t need any maintenance but there are already bits which have been patched and the edges are breaking up.
Another local added: “The raised edge is a big issue.
“People could easily trip off or go off in their wheelchair.
“If they’d asked what we wanted we could have discussed these things.
“This should have been a good news story for Kirriemuir.
“Instead it’s like a road that’s totally out of place – they’d have been as well painting a white line up the middle.”
Kinnordy paths have previously flooded, with beavers getting the blame for causing drainage issues.
Council defend design
Part of the delay in re-opening is down to the replacement of a bridge broken during construction.
However, Angus Council say the path design came out of community consultation.
It’s been built with cash from the authority’s Cycling, Walking, Safer Routes budget.
“Our records from the 2021/22 consultation show the proposal for this project came from a member of the public who also suggested a number of other projects for investment through this funding.
“All project suggestions were assessed, scored and prioritised by council officers.”
Councillors approved the Kirrie project in June 2021.
“All sections of the path have sufficient width to accommodate all users,” said the council.
“Once works are complete, the path will be subject to a user audit and any issues identified will be addressed.”
And they say contractor Tayside Contracts will pick up the tab for replacing the broken bridge.
“The timescale for the works was originally for completion by end March 2022,” the council added.
“The scheme will fully re-open upon completion of the damaged bridge replacement.
“We do not have a definite date for this as the contractor is currently awaiting construction materials.”
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