‘It’s only going to get worse’ – fewer crossings and increased demand spell trouble ahead for ferry service

The aftermath of an accident on the Unst ferry last year is set to have major implications for travel to the North Isles, councillors have been told.

Ferries manager Andrew Inkster said the additional time spent lashing vehicles on the Bluemull Sound service would mean fewer runs could operate.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency imposed the new requirements on special vehicles, including those carrying dangerous goods - irrespective of weather and tidal conditions - following an accident last October when a concrete mixer overturned on the deck of the Bigga.

No one was hurt, although one person was treated for shock.

Discussing the impact of the new requirements at today’s (Tuesday) environment and transport committee, Mr Inkster said they added around 10 minutes per journey.

This in turn reduced the capacity on the service – which is already struggling to cope.

“Given the volumes of traffic we saw last year, when we barley coped with the turnaround times we have at the moment, it will only make that situation worse,” he added.

Mr Inkster said his team was looking at new timetables to minimise the disruption to the service – but there were constraints around how long crew were able to work.

Businesses in the North Isles complained about the impact ferry disruption had on their footfall last summer- with some saying they were questioning whether to continue.

The prospect of further disruption is set to bring even more challenges for the months ahead.

Mr Inkster said the demand for travel already exceeded capacity, as last year had demonstrated.

“We struggled to move all the traffic, whether that was commercial, leisure or tourist related,” he said.

“And this will reduce the number of runs so that problem is only going to get worse.”

Lerwick North and Bressay councillor Arwed Wenger expressed grave concern at what he heard.

He questioned how the service would cope with the demands of tourists along with the needs of North Isles communities - particularly as SaxaVord Spaceport is scheduled to host its first test flight later this year,

“Shetland will have a problem,” he said.

Infrastructure director John Smith acknowledged Mr Wenger’s concerns.

“We are in a box here,” he said,

While he said the ferry service would try to find ways of minimising the impact of capacity constraints, he warned that it could not eliminated altogether. 

“It’s a challenge,” he added. “And one that we will be be seeking to work with service users and communities to manage as effectively as we can - but there isn’t a simple fix.”

Committee chairwoman Moraig Lyall said the “bottom line” was that if crossings took longer, fewer journeys would be possible.

“Therefore this season we will see a reduction of capacity on that route which is already struggling to meet that demand, so that demand constraint will only get worse.”

A report to the council said communities and other stakeholders will also be consulted with once proposed timetables were drawn up.