A new walk-through Covid-19 testing centre is set to open in Perth this weekend.
The centre will be opening in the Thimblerow Car Park in the city centre – near the High Street – from Sunday.
The site is one of 11 new testing sites across the country and comes in addition to the drive-through mobile testing centre at McDiarmid Park.
Construction work for the centre began on Thursday.
Information shared by Perth and Kinross Council on social media revealed the centre will be open between 2pm and 5pm on Sunday and from 9am until 5pm on Monday.
From November 17, it will be open for testing between 8am and 8pm for seven days a week for a minimum of three months.
The centre will be open on Sun 15 Nov, 2pm-5pm, and on Mon 16 Nov from 9am until 5pm.
From Tues 17 Nov, normal operating hours will be 8am until 8pm, seven days a week for a minimum of three months.
— Perth & Kinross Council (@PerthandKinross) November 12, 2020
The new testing site was welcomed by SNP MSP Roseanna Cunningham, who believes it will reduce the need for Perthshire residents to travel to other local authority areas.
Members of the public are currently urged to walk or cycle to the testing centre if they do not have a car, and to avoid public transport where possible.
Only a small area of the car park will be used for the testing site, with vehicles still able to park in the remainder of the spaces.
Eligibility checking and booking a Covid-19 test can be done on the UK Government website.
The Perthshire South and Kinross-shire representative said: “I am really pleased to learn that not only has a site been decided upon for a full-time walkthrough testing centre in Perth.
“Well done to everybody who has been responsible for bringing it about.
“With the new system of restriction levels being determined on a local authority health board basis it became more important than ever that people in Perth & Kinross had a full-time test centre that we could access within our own council area, rather than having to go to Dundee.”
She added: “It has always been important to book a test if you are experiencing the symptoms of Covid-19, and this very welcome development will make that process significantly easier for many of my constituents.”
The council-owned Thimblerow car park had been slated to be used as land for a new cinema and retail complex but the economic conditions have forced that plan to be shelved.
