ARDROSSAN to Brodick. Brodick to Ardrossan. It’s a ferry route which has existed for generations and the towns are practically joined at the hip.
People who live in Ardrossan work in Arran, and vice versa. People from Arran come across for dentist and doctors’ appointments, to do shopping, and often to go on day trips to Glasgow, with a station right at the harbour.
But over the last week an unprecedented situation has befallen Ardrossan because until at least the end of March, there will be no ferries running to Arran from the town.
So while there is now a long-awaited new ferry sailing between Troon and Brodick in MV Glen Sannox, there are new fears among residents and businesses that a lack of development at the port of Ardrossan means the town is going to be left behind.
How did we get here?
The MV Glen Sannox finally came into service on Monday but it is too big to berth at Ardrossan and so has to operate from Troon – which it is currently doing alongside MV Alfred. The Glen Rosa, which is due to begin sailing in autumn, is also too big for Ardrossan.
The Ardrossan Harbour Project – to develop the port and make it suitable for the new vessels – was given the go-ahead in 2018 by then transport minister Humza Yousaf.
But Transport Scotland paused the project in 2023 following concerns about rising costs, and said a new business case would be developed.
The people of Ardrossan are still waiting for the revised business case to be approved. Kevin Hobbs, the chief executive of government-owned ferries and harbours body CMAL, told MSPs earlier this month talks with the port's private owner – Peel Ports – about funding remained "in the middle of nowhere".
Ardrossan has been without the MV Caledonian Isles for a while now, with the ship having been out of action since early last year due to significant repairs needing to be carried out.
But it is now also without the MV Isle of Arran which – once the Glen Sannox came online – was moved to the Oban to Mull route.
Frances Gilmour, chair of the Save Ardrossan Harbour campaign, explained the people of the town have never known life without the ferry.
“It’s unprecedented, there’s never been a situation where there’s been no ferries,” she told The National.
“People are hugely disappointed but also angry.”
The Caley Isles – as it is affectionately known – is due to come back at the end of March but given it has already been out of service for much longer than expected, locals are still nervous about whether it will return as planned.
Even if it does, the future remains uncertain, with locals doubting whether the Caley Isles will be kept on the route once the Glen Rosa comes online, given that would mean three large ferries going to and from Brodick.
Matthew McGowan, secretary of the Save Ardrossan Harbour campaign, said: “There is no way they will run three boats.”
Fearing for the future
While the lack of development at the harbour has been rumbling on for some time, the fact the ferries have now completely stopped from Ardrossan has really heightened fears for the future of the town.
While Troon may not seem that far away, the move has opened a Pandora’s Box of problems for Ardrossan businesses and the people of Arran.
The ferry to and from Troon takes about 20 minutes longer than the journey to and from Ardrossan, so return sailings from there are limited to three a day, rather than the five that used to exist from Ardrossan.
When foot passengers get to Troon, the train station is a good 20 to 25 minute walk from the ferry port so, combined with fewer sailings, it is practically impossible for them to take a day trip to Glasgow.
But bigger concerns are that Arran residents need to get to Ardrossan for the likes of health appointments, shopping and a multitude of other services, while businesses in Ardrossan are seriously worried about the inevitable drop in footfall.
She said: “We are providing dental services and we have Arran patients registered with us who joined for a reason. It is a worry as to how we are going to be able to continuously provide services for them. They will have to go to Troon to get to us.
“We don’t know what to say to them because there is no future [guaranteed].
“We want to expand as a company but we don’t know if we will be able to.”
Dora Kane, owner of Sylvia’s Soapy Suds laundrette, said she has already been feeling the effects of having lost the Caley Isles and fears things will now get worse, with the business having lost the custom of a few Air BnB owners in Arran and CalMac staff who aren’t bringing in their uniforms anymore.
“There’s been quite a big drop in income, about £400 or £500 a week,” she said.
“A lot of people have sold their Airbnbs because they can’t get over and we’ve got one at the moment who has to go to Troon and drive here to pick up her washing and drive back to Troon.
“It will get worse.”
“We send a lot of stuff in parcels over, we have quite a few individuals and garages we supply parts to, and obviously that keeps vehicles on Arran on the road, so they’re relying on that,” he said.
“We’ve now got to send those to Troon first.
“A guy phoned yesterday looking for some parts and so he came over on the boat into Troon, drove all the way up here, got his stuff, then went back down to go over from Troon again. It’s time, it’s money and it’s an inconvenience.”
The campaign ramps up
Christine Cowie, who lives in nearby Saltcoats but hails from Ardrossan, and Gilmour have been delivering hundreds of petitions to gather support for their campaign to save the harbour. This will eventually be handed in to the Scottish Parliament.
Asked how worried she was about Ardrossan, Cowie said: “It will die [without the ferries]. There wouldn’t be footfall coming into the town.
“If people don’t come to Ardrossan for the ferry, there is no reason for them to come to Ardrossan, unless they’re visiting relatives.”
McGowan said businesses in Ardrossan were only told there would be no ferries between January and March just before Christmas and with no idea of when the business case will be signed off and how long any subsequent development would take, they are finding it difficult to plan ahead.
“If they are going to face a couple of years with no boats while work gets done, they need to plan for that now or they won’t be here when the boats come back,” said McGowan.
“There should be some sort of package to help businesses through that time.”
A CalMac spokesperson said: “We are committed to running Arran services to and from Ardrossan, but MV Glen Sannox cannot berth there currently, and MV Alfred can only operate out of Troon.
“However, our plan is to operate from both Ardrossan and Troon from March 28, by which point we anticipate MV Caledonian Isles will have returned to the network. There will be five returns per day from Ardrossan under this plan.
“Now that MV Glen Sannox is in service, we can operate two vessels to and from Arran, greatly increasing capacity and reliability.
"Services between Ardrossan and Brodick are already bookable on our website for the summer."
A spokesperson for Ardrossan Harbour said: “The ongoing cancellations, delays, and uncertainty are devastating for the people and businesses of Arran and Ardrossan.
“Peel Ports remains fully committed to the original port redevelopment programme and is ready to begin the public procurement process once the ministerial taskforce approves the revised business case.”
A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring the Arran ferry service is fit for the future, and to finding a solution at Ardrossan that can be delivered in a cost-effective way reflecting the needs of all partners involved.
“We acknowledge the call for a commitment to Ardrossan, and absolutely understand the views of the communities in favour of retaining it as the mainland port, and this has been laid out in the business review work accordingly. The business case and overall delivery of the project need to be supported by financial packages from each of the main funding partners.
“The ongoing discussions and negotiations around the delivery of improvements at the port have been complex but the business case review is substantially complete, and project partners continue to work on this as quickly as practicable.”
