Engineers from Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) have commenced work to underground overhead distribution power lines near the village of Strathyre.
The £312,000 investment will see 2.4 km of overhead power lines buried underground along a popular national trail on the shores of Loch Lubnaig in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, with the works expected to complete by the end of April.
The investment in the area forms part of a £15m project to underground 90 km of overhead lines in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, National Parks and National Scenic Areas, targeting sections of SSEN's network which will provide the greatest visual improvement to natural landscapes across the country.
Michael O'Donnell, Project Engineer at SSEN, said:
"Overhead power lines on our network provide a secure and cost-effective way of safely bringing power to homes and businesses in the north of Scotland, but we understand there may be areas where people feel they have an unfavourable impact on the visual appeal of the natural environment.
"Following an application from a member of the public, supported strongly by the local community, we're delighted to commence work to underground 2.4 km of power lines in a very popular area for visitors, cyclists, fishing enthusiasts and tourists, with the line crossing a wide, open landscape of natural beauty.
"Our undergrounding programme helps us understand what matters most to our customers, targeting our investment in the right areas where we know it will make a real difference."
Members of the public can nominate areas for undergrounding to be assessed by SSEN and local authority planners by visiting ssen.co.uk/undergrounding where they will be asked to provide details of the location including a map or grid reference, a photograph, a reason why they think the line should be undergrounded and indicate who else in their local community supports the proposal.