Comment posted Please respond to the A83 Petition today by Robert Wakeham.
I’m surprised that you don’t drive around, on principle, if you think that WF is a ripoff, as Calmac’s charges seem remarkably similar, or is it that you don’t think of Calmac as profiting from your money?
Robert Wakeham also commented
- A fair point, Ferryman, but I still think that your habit of endlessly referring to WF’s profits rather than their charges or fares suggests an excessive degree of resentment just because they’re a private company, rather than because of their charges.
The comments made by others about widespread reluctance among ferry operators to publish commercial vehicle rates surprises me, as I would have thought that in this day & age of European regulation there’d be laws insisting on more transparency – unless there was competition that might argue for commercial confidentiality. - You misunderstand – the prices you pay on the Tarbert – Portavadie route are comparable to those on WF’s route, for a similar distance.
- Ferryman you must be the only person in the world that – when reading about road crossing points – thinks of a ferry.
Recent comments by Robert Wakeham
- McGrigor supports small scale hydro schemes but is concerned about lack of grid connectivity
If not ‘bitter’, then how about ‘negative’, ‘petty’, or just plain miserable?
Effective ways of providing energy for this country is an increasingly fraught subject, with government commitment to ‘green’ power leading to the perception that our politicians are swimming with sharks, and a proliferation of wind farms that are good for some sectors of the local economy but which are a major cause of price inflation.
And the Kintyre / Arran power emergency this spring served to highlight the fact that large scale wind generated electricity can be likened to a rough single malt – no use unless it’s blended with other spirit to make it palatable.
I live in hope that SSE’s Sound of Islay tidestream power project will prove more user-friendly – as are the hydro power plants described by Jamie McGrigor, as far as I can gather.
Here in mid Argyll we’re being shown the next windfarm proposal – 25 turbines for Electricite de France above Brenfield, which would form a backdrop to Ardrishaig, and would be so close to the recently unveiled proposals by E.ON for up to 24 turbines above Inverneill as to be semi-detached.
That’s up to 49MW plus up to 90MW, that would all presumably have to be ‘blended’ with power from elsewhere to make it digestible, and if anyone thought that ‘fast breeder’ only referred to a type of nuclear reactor, just look at the emerging cluster of wind farms south of Ardrishaig. - Argyll Flyer spotted going into Ardmaleish yard on Bute this afternoon
Doesn’t the SPTE have a remit to co-ordinate public transport provision here? – maybe I’m imagining it, or maybe they’re just pretending, or maybe they’re only really interested in Strathclyde bus services and the Glasgow subway (on the basis that only a tiny proportion of voters use the Gourock ferries, and politics is all) - 31 hour shout Tobermory Lifeboat’s longest ever, ending in joint operation with Oban lifeboat
The Oban Times reported on 6th June on the MAIB report on a similar incident last July when a small container ship rammed the Isle of Bute, and apparently legal action is ongoing. - Refloated cargo ship MV Fri Ocean escorted to Lynn of Lorne – and on into Oban
Not being a mariner, I wonder why – in this day and age of almost universal use of radar (and GPS?) for navigation – ships don’t seem to be equipped with a proximity alarm, a bloody great klaxon fit to waken the dead, that is triggered if the boat closes with an identifiable hazard.
It would have to be capable of deactivation in harbour areas and, eg, places like the Corran Narrows – but would surely be invaluable, especially at night.
Maybe it would be seen as a dangerous threat to the need for proper watch keeping. - Auchindrain in crisis: facing paying off its two permanent staff
Considering how all the wind farm developers are so keen (and can clearly afford) to provide substantial funding to help local community ventures, this is surely a prime example of an exceptionally good local cause with national significance.
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Newsroom (aka soapbox) wrote : ” the lack of safe crossing points at Ardrishaig and Tarbert”.
Are you suggesting there is an unsafe ferry crossing operating at Tarbert?
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Ferryman you must be the only person in the world that – when reading about road crossing points – thinks of a ferry.
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If I want to get to Campbeltown I get the ferry from Portavadie to Tarbert. Its not my fault if Newsroom has blinkered vision and cannot see beyond roads.
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I’m surprised that you don’t drive around, on principle, if you think that WF is a ripoff, as Calmac’s charges seem remarkably similar, or is it that you don’t think of Calmac as profiting from your money?
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I just like competition, then I don’t need to worry.
You are correct that the prices on the old streaker service were comparable with WF. But the streakers went further, with more crew, using old inefficient vessels, silly shore ticketing arrangements and a ridiculous timetable – yet the vehicle portion still turned a profit i.e. WF must have been turning a good profit.
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You misunderstand – the prices you pay on the Tarbert – Portavadie route are comparable to those on WF’s route, for a similar distance.
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RW: no you don’t understand basic economics. The WF route carries far higher traffic volumes and has economies of scale not available on the Tarbert route.
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A fair point, Ferryman, but I still think that your habit of endlessly referring to WF’s profits rather than their charges or fares suggests an excessive degree of resentment just because they’re a private company, rather than because of their charges.
The comments made by others about widespread reluctance among ferry operators to publish commercial vehicle rates surprises me, as I would have thought that in this day & age of European regulation there’d be laws insisting on more transparency – unless there was competition that might argue for commercial confidentiality.
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The only way to decide what the fare should be is to look at the level of profit. If the profit level is fair then you cannot really grumble about the fare, however high it is.
That is why you cannot directly compare WF with the Portavadie Tarbert route.
Also whilst dropping fares on WF route would stimulate increased traffic that is less true on Portavadie Tarbert.
High volume low cost ferries is what Dunoon and Cowal need but there is no hope of reduced fares when WF cannot cope with the current demand.
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Your right, given the longer crossing and the additional costs, the fares should have been higher.
Whoops does that mean that the vehcile fares were being kept down by subsidy payments.
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Donald McDonald:
No the certified accounts of the Cowal Ferries (and the earlier review by the EU) showed the vehicle portion made a profit.
So the question is were WF making an excessive profit?
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