Barra needs improved ferry services says government study 22/12/11
Barra requires a better ferry service highlights the Scottish Government in a review of Scottish ferry services. It promises a commitment to add a couple of daily sailings to the route at some point.
The blueprint for future ferry improvements contains a promise from the government to retain all the present routes and ports. There had been fears it could axe the Tarbert and one of the Uist services.
The report says: “There is a need for all principal and secondary routes to be retained because of the distance between the ports; the population around the secondary routes and the need to ensure adequate exit ports for resilience purposes.”
It highlights: “Barra is the only landmass in the Western Isles which does not currently receive a service that meets the community’s needs in terms of service profile. Their current winter service is 3 days per week and ideally we want to provide at least 5 days.”
No spare cash and a lack of spare capacity within the Cal Mac fleet means any improvement is only an aspiration. At present, any extra runs to Castlebay could mean less to Lochboisdale as the two island ports shares a vessel.
The report says: “There are no viable cost effective options available without affecting the other Western Isles services. Within the Western Isles the Barra service will be given priority for funding in the future.”
The present three sailing days during winter is “unsatisfactory” and the community should “at least five sailing days during the winter from their principal and only service.”
The report highlights: “There is no immediate short-
“The Lochboisdale service remains a valuable secondary route for the Uists and Benbecula and we cannot improve the service provision to Barra without affecting that service.”
“Proposals to provide new vessels for other communities (Arran and Mull) will at a network level provide opportunities for existing vessels to be made available to increase the service provision to Barra.”
The findings of the review are out to public consultation.