CalMac ferries crisis: 'Never-ending storm of disruption' for key route as timetable changes hit
CalMac warns of “significant” interruption to services
Passengers on one of CalMac’s busiest routes are facing a “never-ending storm of disruption” by being forced to switch several times between ports 15 miles apart, an MSP has complained.
A shortage of ferries because of breakdowns and refits, along with harbour maintenance work, means sailings on the main ferry route to Arran will be shifted between Ardrossan and Troon several times until October.
The island’s ferry committee, which represents passengers, said the situation was “destroying confidence” in the ability to travel.
The changes will involve a single, smaller ferry providing the service to Brodick, which carried 658,000 passengers last year, for a week in September compared to the normal two.
During that week, overall car-carrying capacity will be halved - and nearly three quarters of vehicle spaces have already been booked.
The service will only run from Troon until September 7, then transfer to Ardrossan for a week before returning to Troon from September 15. Many passengers prefer Ardrossan because it is shorter and more frequent crossings a port rail link.
CalMac was forced to suspend the service in January because of a shortage of ferries during mammoth repairs to Caledonian Isles, the route’s main vessel, which could continue until November.
Another vessel, Isle of Arran, was drafted in to serve the route for three weeks until Thursday last week, but was then switched to Islay.
The ferry will temporarily resume Ardrossan-Brodick sailings from Sept 8-14 while the Troon linkspan, which enables vehicles to drive on and off vessels, undergoes maintenance.
CalMac said 71 per cent of vehicle spaces for that week had already been booked. In subsequent weeks, between 25 and 40 per cent of space have been booked.
Winter timetable plans due
There will be no Ardrossan sailings again from September 15 to at least October 19, with CalMac reviewing its planned winter timetables because of Caledonian Isles’ extended absence. Details are due within two weeks.
Troon sailings are handled by the new Glen Sannox ferry and chartered catamaran Alfred, neither of which can use Ardrossan.
Isle of Arran will be out of service from September 18 to October 23 for annual maintenance, followed by Loch Seaforth, CalMac’s largest vessel, which operates the Ullapool-Stornoway route, from October 18.
‘The latest downpour’
That will further reduce capacity on the main Arran route as Alfred is due to help cover for Loch Seaforth.
West of Scotland Liberal Democrat MSP Jamie Greene said: “Islanders are facing a never-ending storm of disruption and this news is just the latest downpour.
“The hard-working staff at CalMac are doing their very best, but they have been let down by a chaotic SNP Government that broke its promise to build new ferries on time and on budget.
“Islanders are now stuck with an ageing fleet that's constantly breaking down and causing havoc.”
The Arran Ferry Committee described the situation as “unacceptable”.
Secretary Bill Calderwood said: “The ongoing saga with regards the Arran ferry service is unacceptable and is destroying confidence in our ability to plan or complete travel.
“Promoting a destination with the litany of issues and amendments is almost impossible. This is impacting both residents and visitors, with obvious reductions in reservations.
“The operator’s booking system continues to highlight the weaknesses in a system which was intended to improve handling of customer bookings and its inability to have it recovered after two years of operation. This is adding to customer confusion and stress levels.
“Senior management appear to be remote from these impacts and this does not bode well for the new contract being awarded in October.
“Arran needs to have a clear and dependable service, based ideally from Ardrossan, and we accept that until the [Scottish] Government makes a decision to upgrade this port, which is at least eight years overdue, we will need to acknowledge that Troon will only partially support our demands.
“CalMac must recognise the economic and reputational damage its questionable vessel allocation process is causing to Arran and stop trying to refer to the Caledonian Isles’ possible return when no one has confidence in the delivery until she has proved capability.”
‘Significant disruption’
A CalMac spokesperson said: "We have shared a vessel deployment plan for the last few weeks of our summer timetable with communities on our network.
“This plan meets projected demand on all routes and has been designed to provide people with certainty of service levels during what we acknowledge is a period of significant disruption.
“We're also factoring in the start of compulsory annual maintenance for the entire major vessel fleet, which starts from mid-September."
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