Limited measures to address concerns over Uig Closure

As reported in last week’s Gazette, there is considerable apprehension throughout Uist following recent recurrent problems with the 33 year-old MV ‘Lord of the Isles’ with no substitute vessel available, which left Lochboisdale without a service.

During the Uig closure, Uist will be dependent for its mainland connections on the ‘Lord of the Isles’ as well as daily sailings between Lochmaddy and Ullapool, a route which is likely to be prone to weather disruption.

However, a CalMac spokeswoman told the Gazette: “There are currently no plans to change Uig closure vessel deployment plans. As such, MV Hebrides will provide a daily return service between Ullapool - Lochmaddy during the affected period”.

An online meeting was held on Monday involving Highland Council, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, CalMac and various other stakeholders to discuss arrangements during the Uig closure.

On a slightly more positive note, Darrell Broom of CalMac told the meeting of plans for an additional daily sailing between Berneray and Leverburgh from the beginning of February until Uig re-opens in mid-March, which would give traffic an additional option for reaching mainland-facing ports.

Kenny Macleod, chairman of Harris Development, has asked why this could not become a permanent part of the timetable since, according to CalMac, it is being done from within their own resources without additional staffing. He said Mr Broom had promised to take this back CalMac senrior management for consideration.

Mr Macleod added: “Hopefully they will agree and we can have an improved service across the Sound”.

Mr Broom told the meeting that there are no similar plans to increase service provision across the Sound of Barra which is one of the mitigation options advocated from Uist, including by Comhairle leader Paul Steele who represents South Uist.

During the Uig closures, there is to be a daily bus service for foot passengers during the closure period, departing from Tarbert at 4.20 a.m. to connect with a 6 a.m. sailing from Stornoway to Ullapool. There will also be a daily bus service from Uig-Ullapool, departing each morning at 0545.

Transport Scotland announced last week that the cargo vessel MV Arrow has been chartered for the duration of the Uig closures. It is expected to be deployed on the Stornoway-Ullapool route which will come under extreme pressure due to the re-scheduling of Tarbert and Lochmaddy services.

Minister for Transport Jenny Gilruth said: “I’m pleased we have been able provide funding to charter the MV Arrow to assist during these vital works to upgrade Uig Harbour.

“The Scottish Government has already shown its commitment to supporting affected communities by funding the revised programme of works, and the addition of the MV Arrow is another measure to help reduce disruption to ferry travellers, freight customers and the delivery of supplies.

“We appreciate that any level of disruption is not welcome, but this project is vital to improving ferry services and the harbour experience in Uig in the longer term.”

CalMac are currently working on timetables for the MV Arrow and will confirm the details in due course.

Robbie Drummond, CalMac CEO, said: “We have been working closely with Transport Scotland to investigate the feasibility of leasing extra vessels and the addition of the MV Arrow is extremely welcome news.

“The Uig closure will be a challenging period for our customers and the chartering of MV Arrow will help provide much-needed resilience during the closure.”