CalMac has announced plans to reshuffle ferries for west coast communities in light of the announcement that a major vessel requires substantial repairs.
The update follows the news that MV Caledonian Isles’s return will be delayed in
annual overhaul for approximately 16 weeks. The 31-
Hebrides News revealed how CalMac was exploring placing MV Isle of Lewis on the Skye
triangle service instead of MV Hebrides -
Last week, CalMac consulted with communities and stakeholders across the ferry network to gather feedback on these vessel redeployment options.
A proposal to send MV Isle of Lewis to the Arran route “is not viable,” as design issues with MV Isle of Lewis means she is susceptible to machinery cooling system issues associated with debris in the water at Troon. This is unique to the design of this vessel and the berth at Troon.
CalMac considered whether dredging works at Troon would eliminate this problem but this can’t guarantee the issue will not occur. This deployment presented a safety concern and ran the risk of further disruption if an issue occurred.
CalMac also looked at removing MV Hebrides from Harris and North Uist to cover the
Arran route along with MV Isle of Arran while MV Alfred would operate the Skye triangle.
Whilst this maintains the service capacity and frequency to and from Arran, the knock-
The shortfall in service on Little Minch, with capacity down by 40%, would see an average vessel utilisation of 111% in summer, which would not meet demand and lead to significant disruption.
The option finally settled on provides the “best service possible to the network,” says CalMac.
The current plan involves operating a service to Arran from both Ardrossan and Troon, due to a lack of suitable berths at Ardrossan.
It is now planned that Ardrossan – Brodick will be served by a combination of MV Alfred and MV Isle of Arran. MV Alfred will operate out of Troon and will begin once she returns from annual maintenance, which is expected to be on 12 March.
Current indicative data on passenger and traffic volumes on the service indicates that for periods of the summer timetable there will still be sufficient capacity to meet demand throughout summer, but there may be constraint at peak periods and some customers may not be able to attain their preferred sailing time. CalMac will operate a bus service to and from Troon, and full passenger facilities are available at the terminal.
Islay will be served by MV Finlaggan and MV Hebridean Isles and the aim is for MV Finlaggan to enter annual overhaul after the Easter holidays and return to service ahead of Islay’s Feis Ile festival which is near the end of May.
This is the preferred option among the local community and will ensure sufficient capacity is available during busy times of the year said CalMac.
Unfortunately, due to a lack of an available vessel, the Campbeltown-
Updated timetables for the affected routes are currently being finalised and will be communicated with customers as soon as possible.
Robbie Drummond, chief executive of CalMac, said: “The deployment plan we chosen provides the best possible service to the network, though we recognise that there is going to be some disruption to some of the communities and customers we serve.
“Losing one of the larger vessels in our network during peak season has had a knock-
“However, we have worked hard and, in the circumstances, with careful attention to feedback and known vessel deployment or fit created a revised deployment plan which we hope will minimise the impact across the network whilst still providing a resilient service which meets the needs of individual communities.
“Given our fleet was already stretched to the absolute limit, and without any spare vessels available, it is inevitable the loss of one of our larger vessels during peak season will cause some disruption across the wider network.
“But our team has been working hard to evaluate what we can do for our summer timetable to minimise that disruption. Any decisions on vessel deployment have not been taken lightly.
“We are looking forward to welcoming a total of six major and 10 small vessels into the fleet over the next five years. However, we face a difficult period as we wait in anticipation for them to be fully operational on the network. In the meantime, we will continue to work in partnership with local stakeholders and communities to ensure the best possible outcomes for all who rely on our services.”
CalMac announces contingency plan as it struggles to maintain ferry services with depleted fleet
5 March 2024
