SCOTLAND'S most notorious road has remained shut for a second day for safety reasons because of fears of landslips caused by heavy rain.

The landslip-prone A83 at the Rest and be Thankful was shut from 7pm on Monday due to a forecast of heavy rain - and maintenance bosses indicated then there could be more closures to come.

Campaigners have been long called for a full public inquiry to determine why road is still not fixed.

Ministers have been previously accused of wasting over £80m in failed solution solutions to landslides on the road.

Up to 2020, some £15m had been invested in catch pits and other solutions along the A83 as part of a £79.2m spent on vital maintenance and resilience on the road since 2007.

Road engineers first brought in a convoy system on the A83 alongside the existing temporary traffic lights as a safety precaution at around midday on Monday due to a forecast of heavy rain.

Motorists were then told that the official single track diversion route, the Old Military Road, which runs through the centre of Glen Croe was to act as a diversion using a convoy system from 7pm on Monday.

Bear Scotland, the road maintenance firm contracted by the Scottish Government's Transport Scotland agency said a meeting was due to take place at 8am on Tuesday to determine if it was safe to reopen the A83.

Motorists had been seeking early updates about whether the road was remaining closed and some expressed frustration at a lack of communication - while the road remained shut throughout Tuesday morning. Details of the continuing closure were not available on Traffic Scotland, the service provided by the Scottish Government agency Transport Scotland for the collection and distribution of real-time traffic information.

Some road users reverted to online user forums to try and get an update of the position.

One said: "Does anyone know if the A83 is up and running again, I cannot see any information updating on the morning road meeting and I am not sure whether to avoid it."  Others said that the A83 was still out of use and that there had been long queues and to expect delays.

Bear Scotland finally confirmed after discussions with Transport Scotland that the road continued to be shut at just after 1pm and that the diversion would continue.

Bear said that the decision to keep the road shut was due to "hillside saturation levels increasing".

Another safety inspection is due to take place on Wednesday morning to assess if it is safe to reopen the A83 to all road users during the daytime.

The Herald: .. (Image: .)

But Bear said further wet weather is expected over the course of the week and teams will be "closely monitoring conditions on site".

Eddie Ross, Bear Scotland’s north west representative said: “We’ve taken the decision, along with Transport Scotland, to continue directing all traffic to use the Old Military Road as a safety precaution given the persistent rainfall being experienced. A safety inspection on Wednesday morning will determine if it is safe for us to reopen the A83 for road users.

“Looking ahead, we’re expecting further heavy rain to move through the area over the remainder of the week, and our teams will remain on high alert.

“As ever, we thank the local community and all road users for their patience while we continue to manage the situation at the Rest.”

It comes amidst continuing criticism over money "wasted" over failed temporary fixes involving catch pits to the A83.

Catch pits are designed to ‘capture’ debris material from a landslip and prevent it from reaching the road.

Moves over installing a series of catch-pits aimed at preventing road closures came after a major landslip around 650 feet above the carriageway shut the road in August, 2020.

The Herald: .. (Image: .)

Engineers said thousands of tonnes of debris including car-sized boulders slid onto the road after 100mm of rain hit the Argyll hills.

One of the landslip mitigation catch-pits, built to prevent landslip material reaching the road, caught around 2,000 tonnes - but it did not stop thousands more tonnes hitting the road.

The slip ushered in a series of road closures for the important Highlands route which by January, 2021 had meant it was open for barely three weeks in the space of five months.

Argyll and Bute Council has said it wants a new replacement route within the life of the current Scottish Parliament.

In August, the Scottish Government announced a £25 million investment for design and development work for the route through Glen Croe. The council welcomed the funding announcement and is now seeking a commitment that work will start imminently.

The final award was given by the Scottish Government transport agency to a joint venture featuring Quebec-based consultants WSP and engineering and project management consultants Atkins, which is a subsidary of Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin while a decision over a preferred solution is not due till next Spring.

The A83 had been operating under either a convoy system or under diversion after a series of landslips that have put the important Highlands artery out of action for weeks at a time.

Two years ago officials said that it may take ten years for a permanent solution to stop landslides on the iconic Scots road.