Visitor Management Plan Consultation

The Cairngorm Chairlift Company (CCC) has commenced the construction of the Funicular railway on Cairn Gorm. Before the funicular can begin to operate, however, the Company is required to submit details of the Visitor Management Plan (VMP) to The Highland Council (THC) and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) for their approval. They finally published the VMP on 29th June 2000, allowing a consultation period which lasted only one month and ended on 28th July. The VMP is still available to download from the CCC website, and we have reproduced the executive summary here.

We have considered the VMP document and submitted our response to the consultation, which can be read here.

Our view is that the funicular railway is not a viable project. If it is ever completed:

• It will not prove as attractive to visitors as the CCC hope, because the planned visitor experience is unimaginative and there is only very limited scope to alter it.

• Economic success is doubtful because it is unlikely to attract sufficient visitors. The CCC's estimate of likely visitor numbers is unrealistically high.

• It will not encourage extra tourism to the Highlands, but may well lead to reduced visitor numbers to other attractions. It amounts to publicly funded opposition for other tourism attractions, particularly the other Scottish ski companies.

• It is already losing money for the local economy as those who feel ignored and/or outraged at the funicular choose to visit other areas, or at least take their spending elsewhere. Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) claim the funicular will underpin 2,500 jobs in the local economy, but the MCofS believe that it is likely to result in a net loss of tourism spending and will undermine more jobs than it might underpin.

• The CCC are hypocritical as they express concern for "conservation" issues while ripping up the mountain with heavy machinery. Vegetation recovery is exceptionally slow on Cairn Gorm, yet this damaged landscape is meant to be the attraction for thousands of visitors each year.

• The proposed "closed system", designed to restrict summer visitors within the railway and high level visitor centre, is unenforceable and unlikely to be maintained.

• UK taxpayers will probably end up paying four times over for this white elephant. First to build it, then to repay the £2.7M EU grant when their strict conditions are broken, then to throw more public money at it when it begins to fail, and finally to demolish it. Clause 10 of the section 50 planning agreement requires a failed funicular to be removed from the mountain. An inevitable conclusion to this tragic episode of government cronyism, lack of commitment to mountain conservation issues, and double standards and hollow words on inclusive decision making.

The fact that the CCC and HIE have taken the decision to commence construction before the full planning controls have been agreed is potentially a huge problem for them. The VMP is far from being an acceptable and workable document, and SNH and THC are under no obligation to accept it. If the VMP cannot be agreed then the construction should be halted. If, on the other hand, the VMP is agreed in its current unworkable state it will only lead the CCC and public agencies into deeper trouble at a later stage.

Background
Crit of the VMP by Dr Adam Watson
latest Scottish Mountaineer report

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