An employee at Glasgow's Queen Elizabeth University Hospital has been left appalled at the state of the Clyde Tunnel, which has been subject to vile graffiti, littering and anti-social behaviour.
The 38-year-old, who lives in Jordanhill, regularly runs through the tunnel during his morning and evening commute to and from work.
Before Covid-19, the gates to enter the pedestrian walkway were operated by an intercom system where members of the public would need to be buzzed in.
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However, since the pandemic, the hospital worker says the gates have been left open which has led to yobs vandalising the walls with words including "b***h, f*** you and c*** s*****".
Litter including glass bottles and takeaway wrappers have also blighted the area.
The man told Glasgow Live: "I’ve been going through it every single morning and it used to be that every time you’d have to press the intercom to get in and that was fine. It meant that the tunnel wasn’t being used for anything other than people commuting through it.
"There’s these big metal gates and during Covid they opened them and hung them up so they didn’t close which meant anyone could go in and out.
"Since then there has been litter and bottles of booze. Some folk take food and drink at night and eat it there, it’s just a mess. Litter would be lying there for weeks.
"The intercom is still there but they’ve just tied the gates open which annoys me. The gates are fully opened every day.
"It’s a shame because at work we are very much trying to encourage our staff to use active travel and not rely on cars. Anything that discourages that is not a good thing.
"We’ve got staff whose shifts end between 7pm and 9pm and I can understand why some people are reluctant to use it if that sense of security you get with the controlled gates is now gone."
He added: "I’ve never seen graffiti and anti-social behaviour like this happen. I’d like to see the controlled gates back.
"Even the guys on bikes whizz down the tunnel at a fast pace. There are bottles and litter lying and they could have an accident when coming around a corner and hitting a glass bottle.
"The more dodgy the tunnel looks, the less inclined people would be to use it."
We previously reported how an employee at The Royal Hospital for Children walks through the Clyde Tunnel clutching her keys for protection after feeling 'unsafe'.
She recalled seeing racist, homophobic and misogynistic comments staining the walls inside the tunnel.
Glasgow Live reported the offensive graffiti to Glasgow City Council who confirmed that it was removed last week.
They said the gates to the pedestrian walkway have been left open due to "faults" and are working quickly to repair them.
Issuing an apology, a council spokesman said: “Offensive graffiti in the northbound pedestrian lane was removed last week and further work to address graffiti in the southbound lane will be undertaken this week.
“Unfortunately faults have developed with two gates to the pedestrian walkways and to keep these walkways in use, these gates are currently being left open.
“Spare parts needed for these repairs are on order and the necessary work will be completed as soon as possible.
“We are sorry for any inconvenience or concern this may cause.”
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