Repair works have forced a bridge at a well-known Callander beauty spot to be closed for a second week.
The Bracklinn Bridge was temporarily closed last week for a specialist engineering survey to be carried out due to questions over possible “deterioration” of the crossing.
In a further update on social media on Wednesday, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park – who are responsible for the maintenance of the bridge as well as the nearby Bracklinn Falls car park – confirmed it would remain closed as “further work” took place.
The bridge is a key thoroughfare for locals and visitors to the waterfall, which has been an important attraction for nature lovers in recent years.
Following the initial closure of the bridge last week, Simon Jones, director of conservation and visitor operations for the National Park, said further clarity would follow over the length of the closure as work
continued.
Mr Jones said: “This is a precautionary measure and follows a preliminary inspection which identified some areas of potential deterioration requiring further examination.
“While the initial inspection did not recommend the immediate closure of the bridge as necessary, the safety of residents and visitors who use the bridge is our first priority so we have taken the decision to close access.
“This will allow specialist engineers to carry out a more detailed survey to identify whether repair works are required.
“While we recognise there will be disruption to local walkers, we are pleased to be addressing this during lockdown restrictions and before we expect to see an increase in visitors to this popular location over the coming months.
“Exact timing of the survey works and bridge closure are still being confirmed and we will continue to communicate updates on this as soon as possible.
“In the meantime we would ask people not to use the bridge or climb over the temporary barriers we are putting in
place.”
