Majority favour changing Lochboisdale-Mallaig ferry timetable

A public consultation has revealed a string of support for proposed changes to sailing times on the Lochboisdale to Mallaig ferry route.
CalMac will now engage with the community about changes to the times of the Lochboisdale ferry. (Photo: © Hugh Venables cc-by-sa/2.0)CalMac will now engage with the community about changes to the times of the Lochboisdale ferry. (Photo: © Hugh Venables cc-by-sa/2.0)
CalMac will now engage with the community about changes to the times of the Lochboisdale ferry. (Photo: © Hugh Venables cc-by-sa/2.0)

A large majority of respondents are in favour of altering the timetable in order to connect the service with Mallaig rail services and other public transportoptions on the mainland.

The consultation, conducted by the Uist and Barra Independent Councillors group (UBIC) of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, proposed a number of options including bringing the Lochboisdale departure time forward to 6am instead of the current 7.30am time, with a later departure from Mallaig at 2pm instead of the current noon schedule.

More than 80 per cent supported the two timetable amendments.

In a statement announcing the results, UBIC said: “The results of this poll show that a connecting rail service is of importance to travellers on the Lochboisdale-Mallaig route and that the public are willing to travel early in the morning to allow that to happen.

“We feel that there is a lot of potential for the development of the [ferry] route in the future, especially during the summer months.

“Incorporating the changes highlighted by this poll would be a good start and a move in the right direction.”

Robert Morrison, operations director for ferry operator CalMac, said: “Now that the survey results have been gathered, we will engage with the local communities as part of our formal timetable consultation process.”

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