MAJOR TRAFFIC ANNOUNCEMENT - ONE WAY SYSTEM

MAJOR TRAFFIC ANNOUNCEMENT SKYE TO TRIAL ISLAND-WIDE ONE-WAY SYSTEM Following several years of congestion, reversing difficulties and increasingly emotional encounters between campervans on single-track roads, a new island-wide one-way system is to be trialled on Skye. Under the proposed arrangements, all visitor traffic will circulate clockwise around the island between April and October. The scheme is intended to reduce the number of vehicles meeting head-on, improve journey times and remove the need for anyone driving a hired motorhome to discover reverse gear while seventeen local vehicles wait behind them. - HOW THE SYSTEM WILL OPERATE On arrival, visitors will be directed north from the Skye Bridge and must continue clockwise until reaching their destination. Those who accidentally drive past their accommodation should remain calm and continue around the island until it appears again. Depending on traffic, weather, and sheep, this should take between four hours and Thursday. Turning around will not be permitted. - LEFT TURNS ONLY To prevent confusion, visiting vehicles will be restricted to left turns. Right turns may be completed by continuing clockwise around Skye until the required junction is approached from the correct direction. The Tourist Board accepts that this may add 86 miles to some journeys, but points out that the scenery is lovely and you were coming here to see it anyway. - MOTORHOMES AND CARAVANS Motorhomes will operate on alternate days according to registration number. Even-numbered vehicles may circulate on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Odd-numbered vehicles may circulate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Sunday has been reserved for recovering caravans from verges. Vehicles longer than six metres must book three consecutive passing places before entering the system. Owners of larger American motorhomes must submit a turning plan, proof of insurance and a recent photograph of the driver looking genuinely confident. Caravans may join the route once the driver’s relationship with their passenger has been assessed as sufficiently stable. - LOCAL RESIDENTS Island residents will remain exempt and may continue travelling in either direction. To avoid confusion, locals approaching against the flow must display the recognised Skye exemption signal: two fingers raised briefly from the steering wheel without any noticeable change in facial expression. Visitors attempting to imitate this gesture will be identified immediately by the excessive enthusiasm. - DELIVERIES AND PUBLIC TRANSPORT Buses, delivery vans, emergency vehicles and livestock trailers will continue to travel in whichever direction is necessary. Whisky deliveries will have absolute priority. Supermarket lorries may proceed against the flow provided the driver has sounded the horn at Broadford and somebody in Portree has moved the blue car. Amazon drivers will be issued with separate guidance, a compass and our thoughts. - SATELLITE NAVIGATION Google Maps has been informed of the proposals. Apple Maps appeared surprised that Skye was inhabited. Visitors are advised to update their devices before travelling, although the Tourist Board accepts that most phones will lose signal shortly after the bridge and begin issuing instructions based on conditions last recorded in 2019. Temporary signs will therefore be installed throughout the island. These will display a large white arrow and, where space allows, the words: “KEEP GOING. YOU’LL GET THERE EVENTUALLY.” - ENFORCEMENT Donnie MacLeod has been appointed Temporary Director of Clockwise Movement. He will be stationed at Sligachan with a traffic cone, a folding chair and authority to point firmly. Murdo will monitor anticlockwise incidents from the lay-by, once somebody has shown him which way clockwise is when viewed from Staffin. Drivers found travelling in the wrong direction will not be fined. They will simply be required to explain themselves to the queue. - EXPECTED BENEFITS Transport modelling suggests the scheme could: • reduce head-on meetings by up to 73%; • improve the emotional wellbeing of passing places; • ensure every visitor sees considerably more of Skye than intended; • increase fuel sales in Broadford; and • prevent anyone leaving the island accidentally. A public consultation will take place once the decision has been fully implemented. Residents may submit comments in writing, provided they are delivered clockwise. The trial will begin as soon as the Council locates enough arrows. Until then, motorists should continue using the existing system: drive carefully, use passing places properly and wave politely—even when the other person was clearly in the wrong. The Council expects the new arrangements to halve congestion by ensuring nobody can ever find their way back off the island. - ISLE OF SKYE TOURIST BOARD "Skye: Now easier to get around. Getting off remains under review."