Christmas travel disruption: 80mph winds as ferries cancelled and roads closed

Key Points

Scotland to be battered with by strong winds, snow, sleet and hail just days before Christmas
Roads closed on the A9 after two crashes in the space of hours
Glasgow city centre streets closed at rush hour due to ‘dangerous building’
Gusts of 80mph expected over the weekend amid yellow weather warning
CalMac ferry services cancelled due to strong winds

Travel across Scotland has been disrupted with roads closed, ferry services cancelled and a dangerous building identified in Glasgow.

Scotland is facing being battered by strong winds, snow, sleet and hail just days before Christmas.

With gusts of up to 80mph over the weekend, conditions could worsen to see the fifth storm of the season named.

A first yellow weather warning for strong winds has been extended by the Met Office to cover all of the mainland, Orkney and the Western Isles.

A yellow weather warning for strong winds has been extended by the Met Office to cover all of the mainland, Orkney and the Western Isles. Met Office

The alert comes into force from 7am on Saturday, December 21, and will remain in force until midnight.

A second yellow alert is in force on Sunday, covering most of the country. Forecasters have also warned that the wind could turn to hail, sleet, and snow over the weekend.

Sunday yellow weather warning: Strong winds across the mainland and the Western Isles. Met Office

A section of the A9 was closed for more than 12 hours overnight after a two-vehicle collision while police deal with a second crash on another section of the major road.

Emergency services were called to a crash involving two cars between Brora and Golspie at Doll around 6.10pm on Thursday where one man was seriously injured.

Both the northbound and southbound carriageways were closed before being reopened just before 9am on Friday.

The M80 heading north near Castlecary is partially blocked due to a collision with emergency service in attendance.

Police are also dealing with a one-vehicle crash on the A9 near Inshes, Inverness, that happened around 2am on Friday.

On Friday, a number of CalMac ferry services were cancelled due to high winds on routes including from Oban, Ardrossan and Brodick.

In Glasgow city centre, a number of streets in were closed on Friday after a dangerous building was identified.

The local authority confirmed a section of the city’s Argyle Street, Queen Street and Mitchell Street were shut after the hazard was discovered on Queen Street and reopened around 11am.

Drivers are also being advised to use caution crossing the A9000 Forth Road Bridge and the A92 Tay Road bridge due to high winds currently affecting conditions.

Very strong westerly winds are expected to develop throughout Saturday with 65-75mph gusts in the Highlands, Orkney and Shetland and 50-60mph elsewhere.

Forecasters say there is a small chance that gusts of up to 80mph could occur across the Highland region.

Dangerous coastal conditions are expected with large waves.

‘Plan Christmas travel ahead’

Travellers are being urged to plan their journeys over Christmas and New Year, after a yellow weather warning for wind was issued by the Met Office.

Tens of thousands of people are expected to use the transport network for their Christmas getaway over the coming days.

Transport secretary Fiona Hyslop said: “We know the transport network is busier than usual at this time of year, particularly over the last weekend before Christmas, as people travel to spend time with their loved ones.

“By planning your journey before setting off, you can make sure you reach your festive celebrations in good time.

“If you’re driving, make sure your vehicle is winter ready and follow any Police Scotland travel advice that may be in place. Traffic Scotland provides up-to-date travel information on the trunk road network through its website, X account and internet radio broadcasts.

“The same advice goes for other modes of transport – if you are planning to travel by rail, air or ferry, stay in contact with your operator for the latest service information.

“I’d also like to take the opportunity to thank staff across our transport network who work around the clock to help keep Scotland moving over the festive period. The last few weeks have given us a real taste of the impact winter conditions can have on travel plans, so their hard work and dedication is very much appreciated.”

Insight Philip Petrie STV News Weather Presenter

When the Met Office issues warnings a couple of days in advance, it normally means we need to sit up and take notice.

This is the case with the current wind warnings for Saturday and Sunday, which are warning of gusts widely 50-60mph across the country.

This is due to a deep area of low pressure moving eastwards between Scotland and Iceland bringing with it widespread gales.

The strongest wind gusts will be through the day Saturday across the northern part of the country, with gusts of 60-80mph possible.

Along with the strong winds, we will also see frequent showers that will increasingly turn to hail, sleet and snow over the weekend – particularly overnight Saturday into Sunday, with the small chance of some snow to lower levels – but the majority will be on the hills before milder air returns on Monday to start Christmas week.

At the moment, there are no plans to name the low pressure a storm, but the Met Office is keeping an eye on things over the next 24 hours.

If it were to be named, it would be called Storm Eowyn, our fifth named storm of the season.