Highlands and Islands Enterprise have received planning permission for a pedestrian bridge linking Inverness Campus with the city centre through the Raigmore Estate on 17 January.

This means HIE's contractor Morgan Sindall will now start on site to build the infrastructure works for the Campus, one of the most important and exciting projects in the Highlands and Islands for many years.

Morgan Sindall has promised to work closely with Raigmore Community Council and those living on the affected area of Ashton Road before and during construction of the bridge. The company will use silenced machinery where possible and operate during normal working hours.

Over the next few weeks representatives from Morgan Sindall will be visiting people living on Ashton Road who are directly affected to let them know what they can expect to see when work gets underway.

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Neil Duncan, Area Director, said: "At the moment we're putting together a draft plan for the Raigmore side of the bridge construction, which we expect will start in March. When the plan is ready we'll visit homes on Ashton Road to ask residents what they think.

"We've also written to Raigmore and Drakies Primary School and hope to send a trained representative to both schools to give a health and safety talk about the construction work.

"It's vital to us that we work closely with the Raigmore community. Inverness Campus is a really important project fro the Highlands and Islands and we're privileged to be involved in its development."

When the Campus opens, in 2015, the bridge will give people who live in Raigmore quick and easy access to the Campus facilities and beyond. Campus facilities will include landscaped parkland, sports and community amenities as well of course as education facilities.

HIE is investing £25 million in developing phase 1, which will bring together a number of partners including Inverness College UHI, the Centre for Health Science, the Calman Trust, Albyn Housing Society and the Scottish Agricultural College.

(GK/DW)