Brodgar Road roadworks - advice for bus passengers and motorists

A road closure on the Brodgar Road (B9055), at the bridge near the Standing Stones of Stenness, will be in place from Wednesday 24 April to enable repairs to the bridge.

These are unscheduled works to make safe the bridge following recent accidental damage outwith the Council's control.

The closure will affect public bus services X1 and 8S to the Ring of Brodgar and Standing Stones of Stenness, and involve diversions for all motorists.

The closure will be 24 hours a day, seven days a week until repairs are completed. It's hoped to complete the works by Friday 3 May 2024.

During the road closure period, the public bus services 8S and X1 will not operate along the Brodgar Road (or pass the Standing Stones of Stenness and Ring of Brodgar).

These bus services usually travel Kirkwall > Stromness > Historic Sites > Stromness > Kirkwall (with the X1 also serving Kirkwall to St Margarets Hope).

For road safety reasons, to avoid passengers crossing the main A965 Kirkwall to Stromness road, the buses will not stop at the A965 / Brodgar Junction, other than on the return journey from Stromness.

The buses will divert to the A967 (Sandwick Road) along the Lyking Road with the alternative drop off and pick up point for the historic  sites at the Lyking Road / B9055 Brodgar Road junction. 

This will result in approximately a 1.5 mile walk to the Ring of Brodgar. - around the same distance as walking in from Standing Stones of Stenness.

Passengers heading to Skara Brae should stay on the bus.

The Council's Transportation team has notices up in relevant shelters at the Kirkwall and Stromness Travel Centres, and campsites, cruise, coach and tour operators have been advised.

Pedestrian access will be maintained across the bridge so people can walk between the Standing Stones of Stenness/Barnhouse Village and the Ring of Brodgar.

The signed diversion for motorists in general will be via the A967 (that’s the main Stomness to Birsay road) to the north end of Brodgar Road – and at that point folks can either continue along to the main road Birsay, break off to Skara Brae, or take the turn into Brodgar Road to approach the Ring of Brodgar from the north. You can check the interactive map at www.orkney.gov.uk/roads 

While road works wouldn’t normally be scheduled by the Council at this location during peak tourist season, this is work that needs to be carried out as soon as practicable to ensure the bridge and wall are safe. The damaged wall will be stripped down to the solid base and rebuilt using the original stone, to ensure its structural integrity.

While the Standing Stones of Stenness car park will remain open for cars to use, it is not suitable for vehicles above transit van size to turn in - therefore motor homes, caravans and large campervans should avoid the A965 end of Brodgar Road while these works are underway. We've worked with campsite operators to give their visitors the heads up.

Further information:

Check bus timetables at www.orkney.gov.uk.bus