B892
B892 | ||||
Location Map ( geo) | ||||
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From: | Uachdar (NF809557) | |||
To: | Creagorry (Creag Ghoraidh) (NF796489) | |||
Via: | Balivanich (Baile a' Mhanaich) | |||
Distance: | 8.4 miles (13.5 km) | |||
Meets: | A865, A865 | |||
Highway Authorities | ||||
Traditional Counties | ||||
Route outline (key) | ||||
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For the former B892 on North Uist, see B892 (North Uist).
Route
While the A865 crosses Benbecula North-South, passing a smattering of houses as it goes, it is the B892 which actually serves the residents of the island.
Starting a mile after the A865 has crossed the North Ford Causeway from North Uist (Uibhist a Tuath), the B892 continues west while the main road turns southwards. To start with, it passes just a few scattered cottages as in the township of Uachdar and, but then the road sweeps round to the south to avoid the airport. After another right angled bend turns the road westwards once more, it enters Balivanich (Baile a'Mhanaich), the main town on Benbecula (Beinn na Faoghla), indeed the only settlement that can really be described as a town on the Uist chain. Here there are shops, public services and housing estates, with a right turn leading through an industrial area to the airport. After a pleasant run along the coast, the road turns south and soon leaves the town behind. There are still a scattering of houses, however, as theroad is once more passing through fields on the rich Machair behind the dunes and beaches. Balivanich is a relatively new place, having grown up since the war around the airport which is also home to military installations. Much of the housing was originally built to serve the workforce for the base, and whilst that workforce has shrunk more recently, the towns position as a core service centre for the Uists is now firmly established.
Beyond Balivanich, the road heads south, sticking close to the coast, which is great on a sunny day, but can be a little hairy when an Atlantic gale is whipping in. Passing through or near the townships of Aird, Nunton (Baile nan Cailleach) and Borve (Borgh), a couple of left turns cross back through the lochan-studded heart of the island to reach the A865. The road then turns east at Borve, keeping a little further inland, and reaching the straggly village of Liniclate (Lionacleit). This is home to the Uist High School and Dark Island Hotel, as well as a campsite and other businesses. After taking the long and, it has to be said, more scenic route around Benbecula, the B892 rejoins the A865 at Creagorry (Creag Ghoraidh), just a mile from the South Ford Causeway to South Uist (Uibhist a Deas).
History
As shown in the 1922 Road Lists, Benbecula didn't have any classified roads in 1922. However, this situation was soon rectified with the A865 number being allocated to the Uist spine road sometime before 1925. The B road numbers from North Uist that were displaced by this new route were quickly reallocated to Benbecula. Whilst the road has been widened and realigned a little, the overall route remains almost unchanged since the 1920s.