‘We feel forgotten about’: How ferry disruption is impacting island life

Scotland’s islanders face weeks of disruption and delays as a beleaguered ferry service struggles to cope.

Virtually every Scottish island has been cut off in recent weeks as state-owned operator CalMac warns of further disruption to the ageing ferry fleet.

The delays, alongside planned maintenance of vessels, have seen ferries dominate the political agenda, becoming a major election issue as voters prepare to head to the polls in the Holyrood elections next month.

On the Isle of Arran, one of the west coast’s best‑used ferry routes, the impact is being sharply felt.

Who is to blame for Scotland’s ferry fiasco?

The Isle of Arran is nestled off the west coast of Scotland. The ferry is a lifeline service for islanders and the thousands of visitors who help to support the island’s economy.

Everything from food and fuel to healthcare and tourism is tied to a reliable connection to mainland Scotland. But that connection is becoming increasingly fragile.

The Glen Sannox, the delayed and over‑budget ferry serving the Arran route, has been plagued by technical issues and breakdowns after little more than a year in service.

CalMac dealing with 'unprecedented level of challenges' — CalMac dealing with ‘unprecedented level of challenges’ STV News

CalMac says it is doing everything possible to maintain services while managing limited vessel availability.

While the operator confirmed the MV Glen Sannox is scheduled for redeployment to the Western Isles from Wednesday, the vessel has been taken out of action again by a recurring engine fault, with sailings suspended until Tuesday afternoon.

Despite this, CalMac maintains that Arran will retain a two-vessel service. The gap on the route is expected to be filled by the return of the MV Alfred following its annual overhaul. Meanwhile, the Glen Sannox’s sister ship, the Glen Rosa, has yet to join the fleet.

Ageing vessels, repeated cancellations and delays to long‑promised upgrades have left many feeling cut off – not just from the mainland, but from decision‑makers in Holyrood.

‘It requires military planning’

For some islanders, the impact is deeply personal.

Elizabeth Bell relies on the ferry to attend vital medical appointments. She has spent more than a decade on a waiting list for a specialist neurological diagnosis. As her health deteriorated, her condition left her unable to walk.

As a wheelchair user, her ferry journey often requires what she describes as “military planning”.

“It’s not an easy task when you’re a wheelchair user,” she said.

“If I’m to go over to the mainland, it is major planning. The night before, you are packing an overnight bag every time, making sure you’ve got all your meds with you. One of the big issues is if you do end up getting stuck on the mainland as a wheelchair user, you don’t have your carers with you.”

Elizabeth Bell relies on the ferry to attend medical appointments STV News

When Elizabeth finally secured an appointment with a new specialist after a six-month wait, she booked her ferry immediately.

But it was cancelled and she missed the appointment. She was then placed back on the waiting list.

“It’s incredibly frustrating,” she said. “They can only do so much over the phone. For something like this, they have to physically examine you.”

With the Scottish election approaching, she believes island communities are being overlooked.

The SNP have been in power in Scotland for 19 years and in charge of delivering the vessels for the Scottish islands.

Elizabeth feels let down by the party and that they’ve not done enough for island communities like hers.

“The islands have been forgotten about in a lot of ways,” she said. “We have things that like The Islands Bill and the Island Plans, all of these fancy things being put in [to policy], but none of it’s being implemented.”

‘My mum wished to spend her last days here’

The current image has no alternative text. The file name is: 13b61347e78541d9a134d0ef49c32170-1775485093.jpg — Arran ‘felt like home’ for Barbara, her son John said.

The ferry service is also interconnected with social care provisions on the island.

John Crawford’s mother, Barbara, wanted to spend her final days on Arran. Diagnosed with dementia, John and his family cared for her in their family home in the south of the island.

Known locally as the ‘Granite Lady’ because of her Aberdonian roots, she built a life on the island – a place her family had returned to for generations.

“She had been coming to the island since she was a small child,” John said.

“Back in those days, there was no electricity in the cottages. The ferries didn’t stop at the harbour, you jumped into a little boat and got rowed ashore.

“She loved the place. And because she didn’t have short-term memory, her long term memories meant this felt like home. Ultimately her life began and ended here in her mind.

“The dementia was a fairly slow decline,” he said. “Her personality stayed the same. She was still Mum.”

The current image has no alternative text. The file name is: 84bce2682c2101bc63b477ee960dca1f-1775485102-rotated.jpg — Barbara with her husband, who died in 2020

As her condition worsened, Barbara’s care needs became more than her family were able to provide.

She had previously received respite care in Montrose House, a care home on the island and wanted to receive long-term care there. But budget cuts and staffing shortages saw the number of beds in the home reduced from 30 to just ten.

John was forced to find a care home on the mainland, next to the ferry terminal, so he could be near his mum and her friends locally on the island could easily visit Barbara.

“That’s when she started to die,” John said. “What was most important to her was her home on Arran, living here and me. And when she left the island, she lost both of those things.”

Just two weeks after moving off the island, Barbara died with her son at her side.

“She was aware, and very sad she had to leave. She panicked she’d die off-island. She wanted to die on the island.”

For John, the pain is compounded by the belief that it didn’t have to happen.

“I guess the difficult thing was we had a functioning, beautiful care home on the island, and it’s sitting there with empty beds,” he said.

“People on an island this size should be able to grow old and die here if they want.”

‘Our produce is often left sitting in the harbour’

Alastair owns a shop and cafe with his wife on Arran STV News

Arran’s economy is also under strain.

Tourism is a key industry, but the unreliable ferry services affect incoming visitors. The constant negative headlines and news of cancelled sailings mean many short-term let providers and hotels have seen a marked decrease in the number of bookings.

The island has become one of the UK’s most desirable locations for holiday homes, driving up house prices and making it harder for workers to live locally.

Without reliable transport, staffing essential services becomes even more difficult.

For local businesses, the impact is immediate.

First-time business owners Alastair Eccles-Wood, who runs The Bay Kitchen and Stores with his wife, says deliveries are often delayed – or fail to arrive entirely.

“Sometimes our produce is just sitting in the harbour on the mainland,” he said.

Short-notice cancellations make it almost impossible to plan.

“You find out half an hour before the ferry is due to sail that it’s not going,” he said. “With perishable goods, that’s just a loss.”

He wants the next Scottish Government to prioritise small businesses like his who are already struggling with the rising cost of energy bills and running costs.

What politicians said

With voters preparing to go to the polls on May 7, people on Arran are asking whether any party can deliver a lasting solution to the ferries crisis.

New vessels may be on the horizon – along with a new government.

The SNP said more than £2bn has been invested in ferry services during its time in office and that additional vessels are currently being built as part of its long‑term solution.

A party spokesperson also pointed to the recent purchase of Ardrossan Harbour to bring the port into public ownership, allowing for its redevelopment as Arran’s primary mainland port.They said they would commit to funding a two‑port service while work on the harbour continues.

“People and businesses in island communities need strong, serious leadership and a plan – John Swinney is a man that is absolutely committed to our island communities and he is fully focussed on ensuring that Arran, and all of our islands, get the ferry service they deserve.”

Scottish First Minister John Swinney STV News

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar travelled to the Western Isles last week to meet residents affected by ferry disruption.

He said cancellations had increased due to a failure to modernise the ferry fleet, arguing the issue had had a significant impact on daily life in island communities.

“Right across Scotland, the SNP’s ferry fiasco is a symbol of their incompetence and waste – but in our islands it has wreaked havoc with people’s day‑to‑day lives,” he said.

“Behind these shameful figures are islanders who have missed weddings, funerals and medical appointments, loved ones who have been separated and businesses that are struggling to stay afloat,” he said.

He said Labour would reform how ferries are commissioned and managed, promising greater accountability.

He added: “Scottish Labour will cut bureaucracy and restore the political accountability that the SNP has been dodging for so long by streamlining cluttered governance structures.

“We will give islanders a real voice in the system and we will reform procurement to deliver a rolling programme of upgrades.”

Arran islanders have spoken out over ferry disruption STV News

Conservatives’ transport spokesperson Sue Webber said: “None of these are new, but the SNP are still failing to act and do anything to fix their ferry fiasco.

“The SNP continue to run Scotland’s ferry network into the ground.

“Taxpayers shouldn’t be picking up a huge tab for the SNP’s incompetence but that is the reality because unreliable ferries are constantly being repaired.

“The Scottish Conservatives would merge CalMac and CMAL and deliver a proper ferries procurement strategy to help deliver new vessels for islanders.

“If the SNP win the election, nothing will change for islanders. Voting Scottish Conservative on your peach ballot paper is the smart way to stop an SNP majority and get the focus on the real issues.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole‑Hamilton said his party would prioritise fixing Scotland’s ferry network, arguing island and coastal communities have been left without reliable lifeline services.

“The SNP Government’s ferries fiasco is a national embarrassment that has left islanders and coastal communities in areas like Inverclyde and Argyll and Bute without the lifeline services they need,” he said.

Cole‑Hamilton said the Liberal Democrats would introduce a 30‑year rolling programme of ferry construction and infrastructure upgrades, arguing new vessels should be built before ageing ferries begin to fail.

“It’s only common sense that new ferries have to be built before the old ones develop problems and start breaking down regularly,” he said.

A Scottish Greens spokesperson said that islanders and local businesses have been “left paying the price for years of failure and disruption.”

Arran is among the island communities bearing the brunt of ferry delays and cancellations STV News

Rural Affairs spokesperson Ariane Burgess said: “Island communities all across Scotland, like Arran, rely on ferries as a vital lifeline. Right now, that lifeline is failing them when it should be delivering reliable, affordable connections that people can depend on every day.”

She said the Greens would prioritise fair compensation for those affected by cancellations and that Scotland’s transport system needs to be better integrated, with ferries included in a single, simpler public transport network.

“We need a single, integrated system, with one simple ticket that works across ferries, buses and trains, making journeys easier and more affordable for everyone,” she said.

Reform councillor Amanda Hampsey said: “It is abhorrent that this government was allowed to continue on their tirade of failure following this blatant disregard for tax payer money and the quality of lives of those on the islands.

“A Reform government would prioritise a clear, funded, and transparent long-term ferries strategy including a rolling programme of vessel replacement, built on realistic timelines with sufficient investment in port infrastructure.”

A Transport Scotland spokesman confirmed the operator and the Scottish Government are working closely to resolve issues impacting services to and from the island to keep disruption to a minimum.

They added: “We want to thank people for their cooperation during this challenging period and encourage passengers using the ferry network to continue checking with CalMac to understand any impacts.”