The council announced last week it had secured funding from Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) which will go towards a new road and footpath linking Dumbarton East to the town centre, if approved by planning chiefs.

As part of the proposals, the three-way junction at McDonald’s on Glasgow Road will be changed to a four-way junction with an exit onto Castle Street towards High Street.

An improved pedestrian link from St James Retail Park is also being proposed as well as new car parking spaces, lighting and street furniture.

Dorothy Heron, secretary of Dumbarton East and Central Community Council (DECCC) says the organisation have long championed this type of development. Ms Heron told the Reporter: “I have only just heard about this, but I don’t see us having any problems with the development.

“We have talked about this for a number of years and now some action is being taken which can only be a good thing.

“In terms of regeneration, we can only hope but I don’t think we’re out of the recession yet when you see the number of shops that have closed on the High Street. But it’s a step in the right direction.” The direction of the planned road would mean it would pass over an existing car park, although alternative parking would be provided as part of the proposals.

Speaking to the Reporter, Dumbarton councillor Ian Murray says he had been concerned the development had fallen through. He said: “It’s been on the cards for a while, I think we did fear SPT had pulled out of the project so it’s good to know that the funding has been provided and we’re planning to go forward now.

“I do think that a link between Dumbarton East and the High Street will be a good thing, I think it will help to bring perhaps more traffic into the town centre, certainly foot traffic, that will help regeneration.” Cllr Murray says while the development would be positive, people need to be realistic about the impact it would have on the town centre. The cllr continued: “We need to look at how town centres are regenerated, I think it would be foolish to think that we would see lots of shops flood into the town. There has to be a realisation that we have to maybe look at more housing in the town centre to provide regeneration which would help businesses in the area — I think the whole shopping scenario has changed. But looking at it from a leisure point of view, Wetherspoon’s have started work on the old Woolworth’s so we will wait and see the effects of that.” Councillor David McBride, convener of Economic Development, added: “This proposal is a significant step in moving forward with unlocking Dumbarton waterfront. I’m grateful for the partnership support from SPT and if this project is approved by the planning committee later this year, it will be a great boost to the prospects of the town centre and the waterfront.” The plans will be on display in Dumbarton Library until Monday, April 21. A council officer will also be available at the Artizan Centre’s gallery to discuss the proposals on Thursday, April 10 and Monday, April 14 from 10am to 12pm.