Two years on, Fife Coastal Path link at Aberdour is no closer to being reopened

A bridge at Aberdour providing a key link on the Fife Coastal Path is no closer to being rebuilt two years after it was wiped out by storms.

Fife Council failed to award a contract to reinstate the crossing at the village’s harbour because of the cost involved.

Now the authority is back to the drawing board, and is unable to name a date for when the work will eventually go ahead.

So where does that leave villagers and coastal path users?

‘A fair amount of frustration’

Roy Marrian is convener of Aberdour Pier and Harbour Committee.

“There’s a fair amount of frustration and anger in the village.

“I am asked literally every day about what the situation with the bridge is.”

Fierce lightning storms brought heavy rain and flash flooding to Fife in August 2020.

Aberdour was among the worst affected areas.

The downpours caused the Dour Burn to swell, and the torrent brought down the bridge linking the Black Sands with the path leading to the Donkey Brae and Silver Sands.

Since then, walkers have had to take a detour.

“The coastal path is well walked,” says Roy.

“I meet lots of people who come down from further north, maybe Dunfermline or Kelty, to go for a walk.”

Concern over safety of stepping stones

The council’s tendering process for the contract to rebuild the bridge was unsuccessful.

Just one company submitted a bid for the project and the cost was more than the authority had budgeted for.

In the meantime, stepping stones provide a crossing point for walkers.

Getting to the other side of the burn without negotiating the stepping stones involves a mile-long detour.

Roy is concerned about the safety of people using the stepping stones.

He says a member of the public sustained a broken collarbone “trying to scramble up to the coastal path”.

Roy says barriers at the site are “thrown into the water on a regular basis”.

And the gaping hole where the bridge once stood means livestock grazing in the neighbouring field have escaped.

“A few weeks ago I was walking down Hawkcraig Road at eight o’clock in the morning and I found four sheep coming up to meet me.

“I found eight in the harbour about two months ago.”

Businesses suffering

In September last year, the Hygge Hut gift shop at the harbour closed its doors.

At the time, the owner said the lack of bridge at Aberdour had “probably halved the amount of people passing”.

Roy says: “It’s a great inconvenience to the walkers.

“The other inconvenience is to the businesses.

“I don’t know what it’s doing to tourism to the village.”

Meanwhile, signs informing the public about the diversion have been taken away.

One found lying at the side of the coastal path appeared to have been deliberately discarded.

“For the last six weeks, anybody who’s walking the coastal path coming east to west doesn’t know until they get down to the bridge that it’s not there,” says Roy.

Frances Ratcliffe is Fife Council’s lead consultant for bridges and structures.

She confirmed the authority received just one completed tender to rebuild the bridge at Aberdour.

“The tender amount was also much higher than we expected based on previous estimates for similar work.

“This is obviously really disappointing for everyone involved and we’re now looking at how we take this project forward, making sure we get best value for the public money involved for this scheme.”