A tree surgeon has spoken out about the fallen tree which forced a major road closure and caused traffic chaos in Clydebank last night and this morning.

The 140ft tree near the A82 was damaged by gale force winds as Storm Henry hit the town yesterday, rendering it unsafe.

West Dunbartonshire Council closed the westbound carriageway between the Kilbowie Roundabout and the Erskine Bridge slip road following police advice, leading to traffic gridlock.

Fed up motorists were stuck in queues for more than a hour and took to social media to vent their frustration.


Glynis Allan Rashid Boyle posted on Facebook on this morning: “Last night was a joke. Left Hardgate at 5.30pm and only got as far as the shops on Duntocher Rd by 6.45pm. Give up. Was meant to be in Dumbarton by 7pm. All side streets trying to get onto Duntocher Road were gridlocked.”

The traffic misery continued this morning as council officials revealed the tree had fallen overnight, advised drivers to steer clear of the town if possible and warned that the road could be closed until the afternoon.

However, the blockage was cleared by shortly after 10am and the road was fully reopened.


One of the tree surgeons working on the tree causing the trouble posted on social media on Monday night to explain the problem.


Patrick Muir said: “As one of the tree surgeons on site at this tree we can only apologise for the disruption. This tree has a huge crack running from the ground to around 30ft up the tree.


“This crack is opening and closing approximately 12in with each gust of wind which makes climbing it or bracing it extremely dangerous. As for felling it... The tree is right next to the new school being built on one side, on the other there are other mature trees and the A82, so felling a tree this size is near impossible with no space and it being highly dangerous due to the crack in the trunk and the force of the wind.”


He added: “I know a lot of folk will find it difficult to understand why a tree has caused such disruption but the decision to close the A82 was not taken lightly by WDC. Public safety is always paramount. Again we apologise and will get the road open as soon as possible.”


Following the tree being cleared and the road fully reopened a council spokesman said: “The A82 has now fully reopened following yesterday’s closure.

"Our teams have been on site removing debris from the fallen tree since early this morning and the road is now clear. Thank you all for your patience.”