CalMac warns of 'perfect storm' as 1,000-passenger ferry return delayed again
CalMac has warned passengers of a “perfect storm” after revealing the main ferry on its busiest route will remain out of action until at least mid-November.
It will mean 1,000-passenger Caledonian Isles, one of its biggest vessels, will be off the main Arran route to Brodick for 11 months, which is unprecedented amongst its fleet. Ferry users said it would cause further “pain and uncertainty”.
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Hide AdThe further blow to islanders was announced on Tuesday, just days before the start of the October school holidays when the ferry was due back in service.
It also came as sea trials for the vessel’s hugely-delayed replacement, Glen Sannox, resumed after being halted for nearly a week, raising new questions as to whether it will be delivered by the latest deadline of this Monday.
The ferry is due to operate between Troon and Brodick from December following some six-and-a-half weeks of acceptance trials by CalMac.
Caledonian Isles’ continued absence has come at a very tricky time for CalMac when its ferries are starting their annual maintenance, during which they will be out of action for longer than ever, making it more difficult to provide cover across its west coast network.
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Hide AdIsle of Arran, the secondary vessel on the main Arran route, has been in refit since September 25.
The 31-year-old Caledonian Isles has undergone £6.5 million of steelwork repairs to its hull, which involved the major task of removing all the engines, then suffered a series of other faults, latterly with a gearbox.
CalMac chief executive Duncan Mackison said: “We did anticipate a difficult winter, with our major vessels spending a record number of days in annual maintenance, and it is shaping up to be just that.
“The combination of Caledonian Isles’ ongoing technical issues and the start of this year’s maintenance window has created a perfect storm for ferry services. We have a baseline deployment plan for the winter timetable period, which allows for Caledonian Isles being is in service.
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Hide Ad“Now, we are likely to have to regularly review where vessels are deployed to try and maintain services across the whole west coast. Our priority is to keep communities on the network informed of our plans, and meet service demands wherever we can.
“However, it is in inevitable there will be some disruption and on behalf of CalMac I apologise for that. I know this will be disappointing news for local people and many of my colleagues, who live and work in these communities, share in that disappointment.
“We are doing everything in our gift to provide certainty to people who rely on us to travel, and to add resilience to services wherever possible.”
Bill Calderwood, secretary of the Isle of Arran Ferry Committee, which represents passengers, said: “This is extremely disappointing news, which adds further pain and uncertainty for residents and those encouraged to travel to Arran for a break.
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Hide Ad“However, we need to highlight the island will remain open and deliver our usual range of benefits. Communities are living day to day with these changes and the negative impact.
“Solutions to avoid further reductions to service and help recover more than nine months of reduced capacity are urgently needed. We directly need to have all parties together to provide a clear and reassuring outlook for the community on this and the associated issues as we head into winter.”
Scottish Conservatives West Scotland MSP Jamie Greene said: "This is another huge hit to a ferry network on its knees, and will only create more chaos for ferry users, CalMac staff, and islanders.
"The continued absence of the Caledonian Isles will impact the entire ferry network, not just the Arran route. With the Hebridean Isles also set to retire in November, spare capacity and resilience in the network will be effectively zero.”
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Hide AdScottish Labour transport spokesperson Claire Baker said: “The impact on islanders of an ageing fleet of ferries and the ongoing delays to the replacement become clearer every day, as they now face greater uncertainty and disruption.
"This SNP Government must get a grip and start providing reliable ferries that allow our island communities to flourish."
Meantime, the Ferguson Marine shipyard has yet to announce whether Glen Sannox will be further delayed after a “blackout” during sea trials last Wednesday, in which a fire alarm that proved to be a false alert stopped the engines.
The trials resumed on Tuesday, leaving the Port Glasgow just six days to meet the latest of a long series of completion deadlines stretching back more than six years.
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Hide AdA yard spokesperson provided more details on Tuesday about the incident and said a problem with the fire detection system had been resolved.
They said: “The immediate response of the fire detection system was to shut down the ventilation system and close dampers in the ventilation lines. However, the engines were not getting the required air and this led to a pressure differential, which forced an emergency shut down.
“The safety system worked as it should have. There was no damage and power was restored following all safety protocols.
“It did, however, highlight an issue with the logic of the fire detection. which has now been resolved and approved.”
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Hide AdThe yard said on Wednesday last week it would provide an update this week - when the the sea trials are due to be completed - ”on any impact on the handover date”.
Glen Sannox is also more than four times over its combined £97 million contract value with sister vessel Glen Rosa, which is also due to operate the main Arran route after completion next September.
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