An iconic Scots road which has been plagued by landslides is to be closed for a third day because of heavy rain.

The landslip-plagued A83 at the Rest and Be Thankful in Argyll was closed at 6pm on Sunday ahead of a Yellow weather warning coming into place across much of the Central Belt on Monday morning.

Traffic from the key Highlands route was to be diverted through the single track Old Military Road which runs parallel to the road as a safety precaution.

Now maintenance firm BEAR Scotland has confirmed that the A83 will remain shut throughout Tuesday.

The road has only been open for just over three weeks since August 4 when a landslip brought about by rain blocked the A83.

A Met Office yellow warning for heavy rain is currently in place until 9am on Tuesday across the central belt and south west coast. But BEAR Scotland says that heavy rain is forecast at the Rest and Be Thankful until early Wednesday morning.

READ MORE: A83 Rest and be Thankful open just 18 days in over two months shuts yet again for safety reasons

Geotechnical specialists are on site monitoring the hillside and the impact of the weather conditions in the area. Engineers are continuing to implement further mitigation measures at the A83, which once complete will provide further landslip resilience to the route.

Eddie Ross, BEAR Scotland’s north west representative said: “Heavy rain has been falling throughout the day and with more rain forecast tomorrow we’ve taken the decision to keep the Old Military Road in use as a local diversion route through until Wednesday morning as a safety precaution.

“We’re paying close attention to the weather conditions in the area and our geotechnical specialists are carefully monitoring the hillside.

“The Old Military Road local diversion route is operating well, and teams will continue to do all they can to minimise disruption as much as possible.

“Safety of road users remains our top priority and as ever we thank road users and the local community for their continued patience.”

Ministers have previously been accused of wasting nearly £80 million on more than a decade of failed solutions to landslides on the road after the latest multiple slips in heavy rainfall.

Some locals have called for a public inquiry into the problems, with many saying a permanent solution must be found.

Transport Scotland published details of the 11 "corridor options" for a new route to replace the landslip-prone section of the A83 include building up to three bridges or tunnels.

But the choice of solution is not expected till next year.

The source of the August 4 landslip was located around 200m high above the A83, which split into two main channels as it spread out in a “fan effect” down the hillside.

One of the channels filtered into one of the landslip mitigation catch-pits which prevented around 2,000 tonnes of material from reaching the road, with around 1,500 tonnes of debris reaching the carriageway at the second channel. Car-sized boulders also reached the roadside in the debris. A further 2,000 tonnes of material was washed onto the OMR.

In total, the landslide is thought to have moved around 10,000 tonnes of debris on the hillside following detailed geotechnical calculations of the hillside, making it one of the largest landslips in recent times. Earlier estimates put the original figure at 6,000 tonnes.

On August 6, a further 100 tonnes of material reached the carriageway overnight via the steep channel scoured out by Tuesday’s landslip, exposing large boulders. Teams worked to make these boulders safe using water-bags dropped into position from a helicopter as well as using a high-pressured hydraulic ‘jack’ to force the boulders into a new, safer position further down the steep channel.

Teams completed the clear-up of 2,000 tonnes of debris from the OMR on August 7 and began work to construct a protective bund and channel parallel to the roadside.

The A83 reopened under traffic light control at around 10.25am on September 7. But the A83 and OMR were closed on September 12 due to forecast intense rain. This triggered a landslide which brought over 2,000 tonnes of material to the A83 with some reaching the OMR the following day.

The clearance of the debris started on September 14 as 5,000 tonnes of material had reached the A83 and OMR.