People who live, work and visit Oban are being invited to help shape the future of travel around the town, with a new consultation seeking ideas for making everyday journeys easier, safer and more accessible.
Argyll and Bute Council is asking residents, businesses and visitors to share their experiences of getting around Oban and its surrounding communities as part of a study funded by Transport Scotland’s Active Travel Infrastructure Fund.
The consultation will examine how people travel between their homes, workplaces, schools, shops and local services, identifying where existing connections work well and where improvements might be needed.
Walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport will all be considered, alongside opportunities to make journeys more convenient for people of different ages and abilities.
For a busy coastal town such as Oban, where everyday travel needs sit alongside the demands of tourism and connections to island communities, understanding how people move around is an important part of planning for the future.
The council is particularly interested in hearing about routes that people find difficult, places where accessibility could be improved and changes that might encourage more people to walk, cycle or use public transport.
At this stage, however, the exercise is about gathering evidence and understanding local priorities rather than announcing new transport schemes.
Any future Sustainable Transport Masterplan, together with projects that might emerge from it, would depend on additional funding becoming available.
The consultation is being delivered by Argyll and Bute Council with support from Connected Transport Planning Ltd and Adventure Oban.
A public exhibition will take place in the Oak Room at the Rockfield Centre in Oban on Thursday 19 November, giving people an opportunity to meet the project team and discuss their ideas.
The event will run from 10am until 7pm, allowing people to call in throughout the day to learn more about the initiative and explain the challenges they experience when travelling around the area.
Councillor John Armour, Argyll and Bute Council’s Policy Lead for Roads and Transport, said:
“People who live, work and spend time in Oban are best placed to tell us what it is like to get around the area and where they think things could be better.
“Thanks to funding from Transport Scotland, we have an opportunity to gather those views and explore what could make journeys easier, safer and more accessible.
“This is very much about listening at this stage.
“No projects or improvements have been agreed through this work and anything taken forward in future would depend on further funding becoming available.
“I would encourage people to get involved and tell us what works well, what could be improved and what would make the biggest difference to their everyday journeys.”
The council hopes the feedback will help establish a clearer picture of local transport needs, including the difficulties faced by people travelling without access to a car.
Residents may wish to highlight concerns about pedestrian routes, cycling connections, access to public transport or journeys between different parts of the town.
Businesses and visitors are also encouraged to contribute, recognising that travel arrangements affect both the local economy and the experience of spending time in Oban.
For those unable to attend the exhibition, an online consultation is already open through Connected Transport Planning’s Virtual Room.
The consultation will remain open until Thursday 31 December 2026, giving people several weeks to contribute their experiences and suggestions.
While no improvements have yet been approved or funded, the information gathered could help identify priorities and strengthen future applications for transport investment.
People can share their views through the online consultation
