Four CalMac ferries down as survey finds 'lost confidence'

Four CalMac ferries have been placed on the sidelines causing summer season disruption while the transport minister has been urged to take action over a customer survey that shows people have lost confidence in the lifeline service.

The state-owned ferry operator has had to reshuffle the pack yet again this summer after the latest in a series of issues which has seen the nine-year-old pioneering diesel electric hybrid ferry MV Catriona ended up sidelined since Monday for repairs to ramps - an issue some user group officials say has become a recurring issue with some of the small vessel fleet.

The vessel that usually runs on Arran's alternative services to and from Lochranza has been holed up at the Dales Marine dock in Greenock for repairs and was expected to return to action late on Wednesday afternoon.

A key landlord on Mull has raised her concerns with the transport minister Fiona Hyslop about services after her survey in May of 240 of its guests discovered what was described as a "worrying indicator that people are losing confidence in the service and the desire to visit Mull again".

But CalMac say its survey of nearly 700 customers using the Mull service in May paints a different picture, with 85% were satisfied with the overall service.

The Scottish Government's Transport Scotland agency said that it "fully recognises" the need to improve the public confidence in the ferry services.

The publicly funded £1m-a-month emergency ferry MV Alfred which has been operating the Arran service from Troon due to issues with berthing at Ardrossan was also out of action on Wednesday morning to to allow for modifications which will make the ramp flatter.  CalMac have warned users that at least two sailings have been cancelled on Wednesday and that it is expected to return to serve on Thursday morning.  

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CalMac say the finger flaps on MV Alfred required modification to allow all vehicles types to be carried and remove the current restriction on motorhomes and coaches.

Another of the west coast's busiest routes to Cumbrae has been without one of its key vessels 18-year-old MV Loch Shira since April 5, due to it being damaged by heavy vehicle.

Users have been told the latest estimates for its return was early July as further damage to the deck of the vessel being found in dry dock.

CalMac has been warning users that with two smaller vessels operating on the vehicle capacity is reduced and queues can be expected particularly at weekends.

It has been encouraging customers where possible, to travel as foot passengers to and from Cumbrae Slip where there is a frequent local bus service connecting to Millport town centre.

And one of the oldest ferries in the fleet MV Hebridean Isles had its movements curtailed on Wednesday due to "some crew cabins being unavailable" because of a heating system water leak causing problems with staff getting enough rest. This led to the suspension of the service to Colonsay and the timetable for Islay had to be reviewed.

(Image: Derek McArthur)

The Mull survey found that around 49% had experienced some kind of problem when booking with the ferry operator varying from a preferred sailing day or time being unavailable (27.01%), CalMac amending the booking to an alternative time (26.28%), having to change a preferred route (14.96%), having issues with the new booking system (14.23%) and having the booking cancelled entirely (10.95%).

Of those who had issues, some 67.74% said it created uncertainty over whether the boats would be running, 41.13% said it affected the length and duration of stay on the island, 44.35% said it meant extra costs were incurred due to changes to travel plans, and 18.55% said they would not travel to Mull again till they had more confidence in the ferry service.

Becky Carter of Isle of Mull Cottages, who carried out the survey and looks after around 120 self-catering homes on the island having lived there for 18 years, said that recent issues with the ferry service to and from Craignure on Mull had had an "knock-on effect" on tourism and the local economy.

One ferry user group has been pushing for better cover on the Isle of Mull after what was described as "two consecutive weekends of a disrupted and inadequate timetable" due to a shuffling of the ferry pack due to continuing technical problems.

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This comes as its regular vessel, the MV Isle of Mull, was scheduled to be removed to cover Islay on two major pinch points over two weekends ending on June 2 at the culmination of the annual Fèis Ìle festival of music and malt which showcases the islands' distilleries, community and culture.

Earlier in May, the vessel had to be kept on a route to South Uist to provide vital supplies - after a pier usually used for fuel deliveries to the island was condemned.

Ms Carter told the transport minister: "The Mull Ferry Committee works tirelessly to represent the community’s needs... They’ve been pushing for a better ferry service for us for years.  The amount of detailed background work the committee have put in to try and influence decision making and show the need we have for a more reliable, well-run service is impressive. Anyone with an ounce of common sense can see from the supporting evidence they have gathered, is that we have been suffering with poor decisions from government officials and a badly run ferry service for some time.

"As I’m sure you’re aware, living on an island means you’re well connected to the people around you. We’re in the village of Dervaig and within a few miles, I have friends who run wildlife tours; restaurants; boat trips; cafes; a guest house and the local pub. We’re used to having trouble getting on and off the island, it’s part of living here and gives us something to collectively grumble about. Everyone expects a level of disruption with it from time to time, and understands there can be unexpected problems, but in recent months, the amount of cancellations and changes to timetables are starting to have a more significant impact on our businesses.

"The most infuriating aspect is that the decision-making with regards to the redeployment of boats and changes in timetables comes with no substantive/statistic-based evidence from CalMac, or that they have any concept of the impact that has on the island economy and its future.

"The tipping point for us has been the recent re-deployment of MV Isle of Mull in April/May this year."

She said that the reduced capacity of the boats that was serving the route for three weeks were "insufficient for our island’s needs during what is the start of our tourist season".  

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She added: "The impact on footfall was huge."

"At this time (April/May this year), we had countless guests have ferry bookings either cancelled entirely or moved to another time, who were phoning us for help or advice.  

"We had accommodation we couldn’t fill because there were no sailings available (fully booked as capacity was so reduced) and our friends working in tourism related jobs were all reporting the knock-on effect they were experiencing too.  

"I’d just like to know that someone who has influence in this sector is aware of the problems we are facing and is going to help make sure that decision making from Calmac/the government is better in the future.  I’d love to hear your thoughts on that, and what is being done to make sure we have a ferry service we can rely on in the future."

(Image: Derek McArthur)

Meanwhile, MV Caledonian Isles, one of Scotland's oldest and biggest ferries, remains sidelined until at least late August after CalMac was landed with a £5m repair bill over rust.

The ferry operator had warned in February of disruption across the Clyde and Hebrides network as a result of steelwork issues with the 31-year-old MV Caledonian Isles which serves on the Arran route.

It has been out of action since going for an overhaul at the start of January and it had been hoped in the last update that it would be back by July to help with the busy summer period.

The continuing issues with the ageing fleet have meant that the summer only service from Ardrossan to Campbeltown has been scrapped for a second year.

The summer service never started last year as it became a casualty when the 38-year-old MV Hebridean Isles was out of service.

Some 18 of CalMac's 31 working ferries that were in service in 2021 and deployed across Scotland are now over 25 years old.

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A Transport Scotland spokesman said: We recognise the impact that delays and disruption have regrettably had on our island communities and this government is committed to investing in our ferry services.  That is why delivering six new major vessels to serve Scotland’s ferry network by 2026 is a priority.

“Regrettably, there are communities who have been more impacted than others and ministers fully recognise the need to improve confidence in services. That is why we are committed to ensuring our ferry service is fit for the future by continuing to work with operators and CMAL to improve reliability and resilience across our network.”

Duncan Mackison, interim chief executive of CalMac, said: “We take our responsibility to provide a resilient service very seriously and feedback from customers is an important part of this. Out of the 676 people we spoke to who travelled with CalMac during May on the Oban-Craignure route, 85% said that they were satisfied with the overall service provided by CalMac, from the point of booking their tickets through to completing their journey. This is despite disruption on this route during the month of May, which suggests that our efforts to minimise disruption were successful.

“These efforts are also reflected in our reliability and punctuality figures, which consistently remain at more than 95% and improved in the last financial year. However, we fully share customer concerns regarding cancellations and disruptions and are working closely with third parties and stakeholders to address these issues.

"The six new vessels due to enter service by 2026 will be most welcome and add resilience to our service. In the meantime, we will continue to work in partnership with local communities to ensure the best possible outcomes for all who rely on our services.”