West coast ferry operator, Caledonia MacBrayne (CalMac) have announced a 3.8%  rise in ferry fares to take effect from the start of the 2009 Summer Timetable on 27th March. It will include the route from Dunoon in Argyll to Greenock in Inverclyde, operated by Cowal Ferries Ltd. The rise is below inflation and it will not apply to routes subject to the Scottish Government’s Road Equivalent Tariff (RET) pilot scheme.

The RET pilot freezes ferry fares until 2010 on the routes involved and subsidises fares to the equiveltn of a road journey of the same distance. The pilot scheme focuses mainly on the Western Isles and other Outer Hebridean Isles. It does include Argyll’s Isle of Coll, because that island is a stop on a subsidised route.

The islands excluded from the pilot have been very concerned about its anti-competitive impact, with access to the included islands significantly cheaper for visitors than it is for those islands not involved. This potential impact is accentuated by the 30 month duration of the pilot, enough time to consolidate visitor habits.

The coming rise in CalMac fares, while below inflation, can be imposed only on the islands already excluded from the RET scheme. This compounds what most see as an initial injustice in the imbalance of treatment of Scotland’s islands. THe islands understand that a pilot is a pilot – but an all-but three year pilot with significant competitive advantage for those included remains a serious concern.

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