Islanders express outrage over ferry cuts during half term, impacting travel and appointments.
A local rep says CalMac’s service is really bad now. To get to Oban, it’s a huge detour, involving an extra inter-island ferry trip to North Uist, costing lots of money. They claim Oban ferries leave only from South Uist on the 15th.
The usual ferry is getting maintenance and a 37-year-old ferry is replacing it. This older ferry had issues with rust and engines and it failed a safety check, cutting passenger numbers because of the evacuation system. It can only carry 45 passengers now and serves Barra and South Uist routes till March 3rd.
Technical issues keep hitting CalMac’s aging ferries. Back in October, repairs disrupted services and a ferry for Arran remains out of service, while another old ferry will be scrapped.
To leave Barra by ferry, access Skye via North Uist. A five-hour trip could become a ten-hour trip. Barra and Vatersay have about 1,260 residents. The local rep calls this situation unbelievable, adding that CalMac knew about this issue, but did nothing.
He states they had lots of warning. He feels CalMac is ignoring people and that appeals were made to CalMac’s chief executive, but these attempts did not fix the situation. Aging ferries have many more breakdowns now, and cancelations increased 2,000% in thirteen years.
In 2023, CalMac canceled 4,485 sailings due to faults, compared to only 217 in 2010. New ferries are late with rising costs and were due in 2018. One might not be ready until 2026, and costs have more than quadrupled.
A person had a mainland MRI appointment, but couldn’t get off Barra to attend, while a builder can’t leave Barra as planned. His worker must fly back, costing much more. The local rep doubts CalMac meets its contract.
Some patients face long trips for care, travelling over five hours to a hospital. A councillor said Glasgow hospitals should be accessible. NHS Western Isles says they are trying to help and provide more services locally.
CalMac acknowledges reduced passenger numbers, but says the schedule still runs. Several ferries are under repair right now, which limits the options for ferries. CalMac knows about concerns for February 12-16, as a wedding happens that weekend.
Other options would disrupt other ferry routes and using different boats breaks crew rest rules. Extra time gets lost in redeployment. CalMac secured more crew for certain routes so customers can access the mainland via those routes. Routes connect with inter-island routes, allowing travel to other service locations.
Plenty of space existed on specific sailings and these extended services fixed the issue. Protocols exist for medical travel if needed. CalMac says they are meeting requirements, maintain daily contact with the transport committee, and claim a way exists every day to travel to and from Barra.