PE1853/C: Introduce a lifeline ferry service from Campbeltown to Ardrossan
I write to note my support for petition PE1853: Introduce a lifeline ferry service from Campbeltown to Ardrossan.
As one of the regional Members of the Scottish Parliament for the Highlands and Islands Region, I am acutely aware of both the local support in Campbeltown and the wider Kintyre area for a regular ferry service that connects the area to the Central Belt, and also the need for such a service for residents and businesses alike.
I was deeply concerned last year that CalMac opted to suspend the Campbeltown to Ardrossan summer service until Summer 2021, having received several emails from constituents about this.
As the petitioners have rightly identified, there is a need for alternative forms of transport from the Kintyre peninsula to the Central Belt given the often unpredictable A83 Rest and Be Thankful pass, which if closed, can add significant delays to road users and businesses.
For example, when I met with the Campbeltown Creamery business in 2018, they told me that they were struggling to find a buyer for their business, partly because the cost of transportation of their product to market by road made it near uneconomical. A ferry service would have clearly been of benefit to this business, and doubtless others.
I note that the Scottish Government argued in its submission that Campbeltown has an airport with flight links to Glasgow, though, in my view, this cannot be considered an affordable alternative form of transport given the above average cost for a flight from this airport.
Similarly, the Scottish Government’s attempt to suggest that the ferry services at Dunoon and Hunters Quay are adequate forms of alternative transport for residents in and around Campbeltown is derisory, given it takes around 2hrs and 45mins to travel to Dunoon from Campbeltown.
I am also concerned that the lack of an affordable alternative form of transport is contributing to the anticipated depopulation of the Kintyre area.
According to Boundaries Scotland, it expects the population of the South Kintyre ward to fall from 5,103 to 4,919 by 2024.
While the creation of a permanent ferry service for Campbeltown is not the silver bullet for reversal of this expected population decline, it would certainly be of benefit in encouraging people to remain in the area.
I also note the concerns of CalMac that it does not have the ferry capacity to offer a year-round service between Campbeltown to Ardrossan.
I appreciate that this is an issue given the Scottish Government’s failure to deliver the planned 801 and 802 ferries on time, and that more than half of the existing Clyde and Hebridean ferry fleet is now operating beyond its life expectancy.
Nevertheless, I note the petitioner’s comments that they have spoken to reputable ferry consultants who have intimated to the petitioners that there are adequate vessels not on the Clyde and Hebridean ferry network that could be procured. I believe this merits further exploration by Transport Scotland and the Scottish Government.
At the heart of this issue, I fundamentally believe that the inability of Transport Scotland and CalMac to be able to offer a year-round ferry service for one of the major towns of Argyll and Bute is simply not good enough, and I would encourage the Committee to consider how best it would be to take this matter forward for the people of Campbeltown and the wider Kintyre peninsula.