CalMac reports 99% drop in passenger numbers over Easter

CalMac saw a 99.2% drop in the number of people travelling on Easter Sunday.

The ferry operator had just 163 people travelling on its vessels to west coast islands compared to 21,570 last year.

CalMac’s director of operations Robert Morrison said: “There had been concerns that the good weather over the holiday weekend would encourage people to try and access the islands but thankfully the guidance not to travel unless absolutely necessary seems to have been accepted.”

‘We are only carrying lifeline supplies and essential workers needed to keep island economies running and communities safe.’
CalMac’s director of operations Robert Morrison

Over the four-day period from Friday to Monday, just 1837 people made a ferry journey on one of CalMac’s 28 routes compared to 112,000 for the same period in 2019.

Mr Morrison added: “Reports from ports over the weekend showed that no vehicles were stopped from boarding.

“This combined with the extremely low passenger number tells us people are listening to government guidelines to stay at home.

“We are only carrying lifeline supplies and essential workers needed to keep island economies running and communities safe.”