Argyllshire and Dunoon News

THE Scottish government announced a hike in CalMac ferry fares yesterday (Tuesday) – on top of the rise already announced.

The combined 4.4 per cent rise compares with 3.8 per cent last year, which was based on higher inflation rates, and 1.8 per cent in 2008.
Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson said that the extra increase was to “protect lifeline services in the face of today's tough economic climate.”

The minister linked the rise with the cost of completing the third and final year of a government pilot scheme in the Western Isles to cut fares to the cost of the equivalent distance by road – or Road Equivalent Tariff (RET).

The latest increase applies to all fares except the multi-journey tickets most commonly used by regular passengers. Commercial vehicles and coaches will also be exempt from the rise.
Mr Stevenson said: "The Scottish government is responding positively to the very real challenges on public spending which are facing us. We are taking decisions which will allow us to maintain the efficient ferry services which the public currently enjoy."

His spokeswoman said that, despite a £2 million CalMac subsidy increase to £105m from April, the cost of fuel, vessels and crewing continued to rise, and cuts imposed by the UK government had to be absorbed.
CalMac, whose operating contract is controlled by ministers, seemed to distance itself from yesterday's announcement when a spokesman said: “The government is entitled to make whatever changes they wish to the terms of that contract and require us to implement them, which is what we will now do.”

The fare increase has not played well locally. Chair of Argyll and Bute Council’s Bute and Cowal Area Committee, Councillor Bruce Marshall, said: “The 4.2 per cent ferry fare increase on CalMac routes is going to hit travellers extremely hard at a time when wages and salaries are being pegged and in some cases cut.
“I can understand why this has happened when one looks at the level of subsidy (over £3m) on the Dunoon –Gourock route alone, however it is hard to swallow when the Western Isles are receiving the benefit of much cheaper fares under the RET scheme.”

Cowal passengers are likely to face a shock when they go to buy CalMac tickets on March 26 as some fares will appear to have risen by a whopping 21 per cent. However, this is because the government’s statutory rise is coming into effect at the same time as CalMac’s annual seasonal increase. Cheaper winter fares will be re-introduced in the autumn when the 2010/2011 timetable comes into force.