Ferry firm CalMac only operated all sailings on its scheduled timetable on 31 days in a 15-month period, new statistics have revealed. The figures prompted fresh calls from the party for the Scottish Government to pay compensation to travellers affected by “mayhem” on ferry routes.
The state-owned operator has suffered problems with the reliability of its ageing ferry fleet – with CalMac having recently been forced to cancel all sailings on the Lochboisdale service for most of June. The numbers were released in response to a freedom of information request from the Scottish Liberal Democrats.
The party's communities spokesman Willie Rennie said: “Communities have been left adrift by a Government that makes getting from A to B mission impossible. In the time period from January 1 2022 to March 31 2023, there were 31 days where all timetabled sailings ran.”
CalMac managing director Robbie Drummond however stated: “Since January 2022, we have operated 199,768 out of 206,951 scheduled sailings, a success rate of 96.5 per cent, despite the difficult west coast waters in which we operate. The way the numbers have been presented here give a misleading narrative which is unfair on our hardworking staff.”
In its answer to the Lib Dems, CalMac noted there were 207 days over the 15-month period when it ran more sailings than were scheduled on its timetable. Drummond explained that environmental factors – such as adverse weather or tidal conditions – were the main reasons for ferries to be delayed or cancelled.
But he added: “We recognise that disruption to services due to breakdowns and technical faults is extremely challenging for local communities and we apologise to those affected when this occurs. The first six months of 2023 has been particularly challenging as vessels have required more work in drydock than planned.”
He said CalMac is “working hard to prevent unscheduled maintenance caused by technical issues”, with “record sums” being invested in the fleet – with spending on maintenance set to top £43million this year, compared to £20 million in 2017.
The Liberal Democrats said ferries had performed below schedule on 217 days out of the 455. There were 2,256 sailings that were lost across the 15-month period, the party added. Rennie said: “Ministers should be compensating islanders for the mayhem they have caused, but they are point-blank refusing.”
Two new CalMac ferries that are under construction at the Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow now several years late and running at more than three times the original price tag.
Rennie claimed: “The SNP and Greens sit idle while the Government-owned Ferguson’s shipyard shell out huge bonuses to bosses. Islanders losing business, missing events and hospital appointments are being let down yet again by a nationalist Government that is totally out of touch and unwilling to stand up for these communities.”
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “While operational decisions regarding the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services lie with CalMac, we recognise this issue is not just about transport performance – it’s about delivering the confidence needed to sustain local populations.
“The Scottish Government has invested more than £2 billion in our ferry services since 2007 and we have outlined plans to invest around £700million in a five-year plan to improve ferry infrastructure.
“Since May 2021, we have bought and deployed an additional vessel in MV Loch Frisa, chartered the MV Arrow and MV Alfred, commissioned two new vessels for Islay, progressed investment in essential harbour infrastructure, and now we are delivering a further two new Islay-class vessels.”
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