The current car park at Glenfinnan is experiencing over 2,000 visitors a day according to the National Trust of Scotland.

However, it is the featuring of the steam train crossing the viaduct as the ‘Hogwarts Express’ in the Harry Potter series of films that has increased the numbers visiting, taking it to unsustainable levels which are causing major congestion and safety issues on the A830 trunk road which splits both sites.

In October 2018, the Highland Council in partnership with Glenfinnan Community Facilities SCIO secured £269,906 of funding from the first round of the Scottish Government’s Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund managed by VisitScotland.

The fund aims to support projects that focus on improving the visitor experience in rural parts of Scotland that have faced pressure on their infrastructure or negative impacts on communities due to the significant increases in visitor numbers.

The project is matched by £115,674 in LEADER funding which is part of the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP). The fund aimed at promoting economic and community development within rural areas.

The project due to start today over a 10-week period and is managed by the Highland Council’s project design unit and the principal contractor for the work is Wills Bros Civil Engineering Ltd.

Lochaber councillor Allan Henderson said: “We are delighted that this work is due to commence.

“This has been a monumental effort from a small community, overrun with problem parking, delivered by a small focused Facilities Group, in conjunction with the local landowner, who turned adversity into an opportunity to improve the visitor experience through the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund.

“Glenfinnan has so much to offer for such a small constrained area through the National Trust visitor Centre, the iconic monument and viaduct coupled with the loch, the architecture and location of the church. It is a magnet for tourists who will soon be able to enjoy it for longer, with less hassle, through this project.”

In addition to the car park, the Council in partnership with Glenfinnan Community Facilities SCIO also secured additional funding of £53,704 from round two of the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund with a successful Crowd Funder to match, organised by the community for the final phase of the Glenfinnan Viaduct project. This project will see a new footbridge and path link the new car park to the existing path to the viaduct, preventing visitors from having to walk on the main trunk road. Construction of this is due to start soon.