A MAIN road in and out of Dunbar could be closed for up to five days as part of a bid to tackle a pigeon problem.

Reports of birds swooping from under the rail bridge on Spott Road and startling drivers were highlighted last year.

Concerns were also raised about the birds’ droppings making the footpath below slippery.

East Lothian Council is continuing to look at what can be done to tackle the issue.

Councillors Norman Hampshire and Paul McLennan

Councillors Norman Hampshire and Paul McLennan

Councillors Norman Hampshire and Paul McLennan, who represent the town on the local authority, were both at the town’s community council meeting on Monday night.

Mr Hampshire said the road would be closed with plans to put netting under the bridge in a bid to stop the animals from nesting.

Colleague Paul McLennan said work was expected to take place within the next month.

He told the online meeting: “I got an e-mail about it today.

“They have got problems with one of the technicians and we are now talking about February sometime for the work.”

Mr McLennan said the work was expected to take place before the middle of February.

A cull of the animals would take place before new netting was put underneath the bridge in a bid to stop the birds roosting there each night.

One member of the public suggested there could be between 300 and 400 birds under the bridge each night.

East Lothian Council are looking to tackle a problem with pigeons under a bridge in Dunbar.

East Lothian Council are looking to tackle a problem with pigeons under a bridge in Dunbar.

READ MORE: Accident fears over pigeons 'frightening drivers' in Dunbar

A spokeswoman for East Lothian Council said: “The rail bridge going over Spott Road in Dunbar is currently ‘home’ to hundreds of pigeons which are causing problems for drivers and also fouling the footpath.

“Protective services have been making arrangements to have the pigeons removed.

“The underside of the bridge is then to be cleaned and re-netted to prevent pigeons roosting there in the future.

“This will involve the road being closed for a number of days (four to five).

“We were hoping to have the work started by the end of this month as it would be helpful to get the work completed during lockdown to minimise disruption but can't confirm dates yet.”