Citylink and ferry luggage service 13/10/11
Sirs,
The withdrawal of the luggage service between Stornoway and Inverness will seriously disadvantage the many who use this service.
It was originally introduced in 1995 by Island based MacDonald Coaches as a means of securing more passengers from another competitor operator, then. on the route. It proved highly successful and Citylink obviously recognised the potential on the route when they gobbled up MacDonald Coaches.
Citylink propose dropping their fare cost by 50pence as a result of offering a reduced service. This reduction in cost is in a sense almost meaningless to anyone travelling to or from Inverness even in these austere times, but it is assumed that this sop in some way compensates for the loss of the luggage service. Why else reduce the fare coinciding with the withdrawal of the service?
Citylink in the interests of public accountability and transparency ought to publish the number of passengers who use the route annually and the cost of providing the luggage service.
We all know "there is no such thing as a free lunch" and would reasonably assume that the overhead costs of providing this essential service were being recovered through the ticket price.
Most people would also be willing to pay a reasonable fee for this service. Recently I paid £3 or £4 pounds to leave a bag in the left luggage facility at Inverness Bus Station for an hour which I thought was excessive.
Instead of being provided with improved travel links and services it appears to many that we are instead going backwards.
Travellers to and from the island deserve better.
John J Maclennan
Cnoc na Loin Cottage
Marvig
Isle of Lewis
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