Residents in one Scottish village will no longer face a 100-mile journey for cash after a new bank machine opened.

The old ATM in Durness, Sutherland, in the north-west Highlands, closed in summer, and villagers and visitors faced a 106-mile return journey to the nearest 24-hour machine in Lochinver.

Now, cash machine network Link has opened a new free ATM in the village store, which will be available around the clock.

It is the first to open as part of a new pilot scheme which the company says will protect free cash access for every high street in the UK.

John Howells, Link chief executive, said: "I'm delighted the new ATM is up and running.

"It was not right that locals or tourists previously had to drive for an hour to get to their nearest machine.

"We visited Durness several times and heard from local community leaders about why the ATM is vital.

"We want to hear from more communities that have cash access issues, because communities are best placed to identify issues."

He said enquiries can be made through the company's request website, which enables communities to ask that Link fund a new ATM, if criteria are met including distance to the nearest free machine, Post Office availability, site security and location suitability.

Since launching last month, there have been more than 275 requests in Scotland.

Gail Ross, MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, welcomed the new bank machine in Durness, saying: "This will have a significant impact for locals and tourists alike and I hope the positive effects of free access to cash will be felt in the local economy."

In recent years Link has cut its interchange fee, a payment made by banks to the individual operators of each machine when money is taken out by a client, resulting in a rise in the number of ATMs that charge.

Link's chief commercial officer Adrian Roberts last week agreed with a Scottish Parliament committee that the public should not be charged for taking out their own cash.

NoteMachine UK chief executive Peter McNamara warned the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee the combination of bank closures and the removal of ATMs across Scotland meant the country was "sleepwalking into a cash disaster".