PLANNERS have admitted an historic mistake — allowing the destruction of a stretch of Roman road 2,000 years old.

Perth and Kinross Council permitted a rare road, built in AD 70, to be dug up for a new development. In spite of the Heritage Trust recommending that first an archaeological survey was necessary, the council forgot and approved a planning application at Kaims Cottage, near Braco, without one.

An expert on the Roman occupation of Scotland, Dr John Woolliscroft, of Liverpool University, accused the council of “carelessness” and “vandalism”. He said: “This was one of the surviving sections that seems to have been in something like its original state, without modern rebuilding, so this vandalism seems to be a sad loss of opportunity.

“Although the little Roman fort is a scheduled ancient monument and so can’t be touched without the consent of the Scottish Parliament, the Roman road past it is not, despite being well preserved.”

The road runs from a Roman camp at Ardoch, on the outskirts of Braco, to the Gask Ridge, a defensive line of signal posts, forts and camps. The council said: “Historic Scotland had no objections or comments and Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust recommended that an archaeological watching brief be carried out during all ground works. Unfortunately, a condition to this effect in the planning consent was omitted, which is entirely regrettable.”

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