Rural petrol stations are often said to serve as hubs for the community as much as they are motorist pit-stops, and residents of a remote Scottish village are proving this point after beginning a £500,000 fundraiser to replace a forecourt and village shop that closed last year.
Kilchoan is the UK’s most westerly mainland village, sitting on the Ardnamurchan peninsula in Highland. The local petrol station, Ferry Stores, which comprised a small petrol forecourt and convenience store with a Post Office, was the only shop for over 20 miles around, but was forced to shut its doors October 2025 due to competition from supermarket home-delivery services, and reduced footfall.
The shop’s closure means Kilchoan’s 150 residents in need of fuel or basic provisions must either take a ferry to the nearby Isle of Mull, or make a two-hour round trip along the peninsula’s narrow roads.
Villagers are hoping to raise the half-million pounds estimated to be necessary to build a new shop and filling station, complete with EV charging, and aim to make the enterprise community owned, but operated under a professional lease agreement so save a reliance on volunteers.
The Crowdfunder, set up by West Ardnamurchan Community Development Company, details that a local landowner has offered up a new site for the endeavour, while public meetings have revealed a groundswell of support for the project, and a planning application has been submitted to Highland Council.
