Islanders welcome CalMac move to 'urgently review' South Uist ferry service

Islanders in South Uist have welcomed a pledge from CalMac to “urgently review” ferry links to the island to improve the significantly depleted service caused by faults and fleet overhauls.

The move from the Scottish Government operator came at a “crisis” meeting at Daliburgh near Lochboisdale on Tuesday organised by South Uist Business Impact Group (Subig) after suffering lengthy disruption to sailings in the mainland.

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The group said CalMac chief operating officer Diane Burke had committed to “urgently reviewing” permanent options for early and late connections across the Sound of Barra.

It said that would provide “much needed resilience for both Uist and Barra, allowing connections to and from the mainland sailings from either island”.

Subig also welcomed a commitment from Finlay MacRae, CalMac’s head of operations, to investigate providing greater capacity to South Uist, whose stand-in ferry Isle of Mull is temporarily limited to 45 passengers instead of the usual 500 because of a fault with the escape system.

The group said this included the option of swapping vessels to allow at least one sailing a week with full passenger capacity.

The normal 3.5 hour route from Mallaig, which has a second sailing three days a week, has been replaced until May 14 with 5.5 hour single daily sailings from Oban.

This is because Lord of the Isles has been redeployed until then to cover for vessels absent from other routes being overhauled.

Businesses also applauded confirmation at the meeting of funding for a new ferry to replace 36-year-old Lord of the Isles by Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop, along with some £4 million for surveys for replacing the ferry pier at Lochboisdale.

The meeting involved more than 50 island businesses, including in the hospitality, tourism, haulage, farming and seafood sectors.

Subig member Christina Morrison, who owns the Croft & Cuan café in Lochboisdale, said: “At first glance, the announcements from CalMac and the Scottish Government appear very positive. We look forward to working with them to ensure a successful outcome in the short and long term.”

Fellow member Rupert Marshall, who runs a guest house near Lochboisdale, said: “The depth of feeling from the breadth of island businesses was clearly apparent through the testimony they gave at today’s meeting.

“Confirmation of funding for a replacement ferry and the next steps towards the replacement pier are very welcome, providing our island community with hope for the future”.

Another campaigner, John Daniel Peteranna, said: “Every business and family is affected by the ongoing ferry crisis, from health and childcare to trade and business. Today’s announcements give us cautious optimism.”

Ms Burke said later: “We are sorry about the level of disruption to the island's service recently.

"We've committed to forging stronger relationships with local representatives and working more closely with Subig and other stakeholders across the Outer Hebrides to address current and future challenges.

"Given the age of our fleet and the fact we're operating more sailings than ever before, meaning vessels have spent a record amount of time in maintenance this winter, change won't happen overnight.

“But we are committed to adding resilience to both inter-island routes and services to and from the mainland.

“Despite the challenges, it was pleasing the summit focused on finding solutions and to hear a lot of positive feedback about our local port teams across the Outer Hebrides.”

A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “The Cabinet Secretary was able to set a forward plan confirming the recently-passed Scottish Government budget had provision to procure the tender for replacement of the Lord of the Isles, which operates out of Lochboisdale, and for site investigation for the proposed new pier at Gassay on South Uist, subject to business case approval.

“We understand the impact that delays and disruption have regrettably had on our island communities and this Government fully recognises the key role ferry services play in supporting the economic, social and cultural development of island communities.

“Ministers and officials continue to support and impress upon CalMac to ensure all available options are being explored to return the vessels to service and support our island economies.”

The agency said an initial £4.4 million would establish a resilience fund to support island businesses in most acute need.