Scotland's weather: Gales of 75mph set to batter the country

Heavy coastal surges and strong winds batter the coast at Troon in a previous storm. Picture: Robert Perry

Severe gales are disrupting travellers across Scotland today with ferries and trains cancelled and some vehicles banned from major bridges.

The worst of the weather is due to hit during the busy 6-9am commuting period, with winds up to 45mph across the Central Belt, and up to 75mph in the north.

CalMac cancelled several ferries on west coast, with NorthLink halting some sailings to Orkney.

The Tay Road Bridge was open to cars only, with the Forth Road Bridge closed to double-decker buses.

Some ScotRail trains on the Far North Line were cancelled between Ardgay or Lairg and Wick/Thurso so the route could be checked for damage, including trees or other debris blown onto the track.

The CalMac disruption comes on top of other cancellations caused by the MV Hebrides being damaged and taken out of service by crashing into Lochmaddy harbour on Sunday.

A Met Office yellow - “be aware” - severe weather warning is in force until 1pm today across the whole of Scotland, apart from the far south west, and north-east England.

The agency said there would be gusts up to 60mph in many areas, and up to 75mph across the Hebrides, Sutherland, Caithness and Orkney.

However, the warning is not expected to be increased to amber, which would trigger the naming of Britain's first storm of the autumn - Storm Angus.

A spokeswoman said: “Potential impacts could include minor travel disruption with some bridge restrictions, and possible damage to trees and structures.

“Additionally, large waves will build off northern and western coasts with the risk of some wave overtopping.”

She said a “vigorous” area of low pressure would pass to the north of Scotland tomorrow morning, “bringing a brief spell of very strong winds before they ease down from the north west by the early afternoon.

“Gusts of around 75 mph are possible, but any one location is only expected to experience the strongest winds for an hour or so.”

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government’s Transport Scotland agency said: “The warning covers the peak travel period in the morning.

“All of the latest information on the trunk roads will be available on the Traffic Scotland website and Twitter feed, and we would urge people to check travel operators’ websites for updates.”