I NOTE your editorial on the Arran ferry situation (“Convincing case for ferry lifeline”, The Herald, January 30). I am not a supporter of Troon because the advantages of Ardrossan as the nearest port are obvious, but your editorial puts too much emphasis on the upgrading of services at Ardrossan harbour complex and not nearly enough on the changes required to the entrance of the harbour to make it a port suitable for large ferries to enter in adverse weather.
Peel Ports must be forced by the Government to improve the entrance to the harbour and Caledonian MacBrayne must be forced to co-operate with a process of giving the people of Arran and their businesses and the thousands of tourists that come to the island a reliable and safe service. This will not happen unless the entrance to Ardrossan harbour is radically modified. This will be costly and the Government will think “well, the problems are only in the winter and there are only 5,000 people on Arran”.
I went to the consultative meetings on Arran in December and found the pro-Ardrossan meeting of a hectoring nature and there was an inability to take on board the 40 years of dissatisfaction with the huge number of winter cancellations we have had to endure.
We are talking here of a lifeline service. If the boat can't sail we are marooned.
There is no point in improving the poor terminal and loading facilities at Ardrossan, if for a third of the year the ferry cannot dock.
Jon Cruickshank,
Canberra, Whiting Bay, Isle of Arran.
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