From winding coastal lanes in Northern Ireland to loops through the Scottish Highlands, the UK boasts some of the most scenic drives in the world. And of those many scenic drives, Derbyshire’s Snake Pass is renowned as among the most picturesque. Crossing the Pennines, the 200-year-old road splices through peaks, moorlands and forests.
But in recent years Snake Pass has faced serious issues that could threaten its accessibility – and quite possibly even see it closed off to cars entirely.
At the root of Snake Pass’s problems is its location. Due to its height, the road is particularly vulnerable to ice, snow and landslips. It’s regularly closed, especially in the winter months. On top of all that, the local council says it doesn’t have the money or resources to carry out major repairs.
Charlotte Cupit, cabinet member for transport for Derbyshire County Council, told the BBC about a section of the road at Alport where half the road is ‘gone’ and where traffic lights enable cars can use one of the lanes.
‘We haven't got the resources to be able to carry out the repair, because that’s many millions of pounds, and that would take it off the wider highways budget that we currently get,’ she said.
While the council has asked the Department for Transport for a ‘landslips fund’, the government agency told the BBC it was ‘not responsible’ for Snake Pass and ‘does not hold contingency funding for major repairs of this sort’.
One solution suggested by cycling campaigners (Snake Pass is a popular cycling destination) is to close off the road to cars completely. Campaigner Harry Gray told the BBC that turning the road into a walking and cycling route could boost the local tourism economy.
You can find out more about Snake Pass – including its history and cultural influence – in the original BBC article here.
Snake Pass isn’t the only famous scenic road in the UK that has been in the spotlight in recent months. Local councillors have warned that Military Road on the Isle of Wight could be washed into the sea within the next few years, while Scotland’s NC500 was named a destination to avoid this year due to its struggles with overtourism.
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