Oban – Craignure

Headline route information

• Mainland port: Oban
• Island port: Craignure
• Check-in-time: 30-minutes prior to departure for cars, 10-minutes for passengers
• Crossing time: 60-minutes
• Vessels:
  • MV Isle of Mull
  • MV Loch Frisa
• Overnight berth:
  • MV Isle of Mull (Oban)
  • MV Loch Frisa (Craignure)

Introduction

The Oban – Craignure route has experienced significant change in recent years, first with the introduction in 2016 of MV Coruisk to provide a two-vessel service in the summer months, followed by the purchase of MV Loch Frisa by CMAL in 2022, providing a year-round two vessel service on this route.

The introduction of MV Loch Frisa in 2022 also changed the way in which the route is operated. The primary Mull vessel, MV Isle of Mull, cannot routinely lie overnight at Craignure as she is too long for the berth, meaning that it is not possible to deploy secure mooring lines fore and aft. MV Loch Frisa is a much smaller vessel and is therefore Craignure-based, allowing early morning sailings from the island.

Step 1: Route Service Level

The table below sets out the incremental ‘Route Service Levels’ which have been developed for this methodology:

Table 3.1: Route Service Level definitions

Level	Description	Example
A	Shared single vessel, single crewed	Several routes in Orkney including: Rousay, Egilsay and Wyre; Stromness - Graemsay / Hoy; and Houton - Lyness / Flotta
B	Shared single vessel, with more than a single crew	Uig - Tarbert / Lochmaddy (summer, currently)
C	Dedicated single vessel, single crewed	Various 'small vessel' routes in the CHFS network, e.g., Sconser - Raasay, Tayinloan - Gigha etc
D	Dedicated single vessel with more than a single crew	Colintraive - Rhubodach, which uses a shift system to offer an extended operating day
E	Two dedicated vessels, each with a single crew	There are no routes with this operating model currently, Wemyss Bay - Rothesay being the closest
F	Two dedicated vessels, with one operating with more than a single crew	Several routes on the Shetland inter-island network, e.g., Symbister - Laxo / Vidlin
G	Two dedicated vessels, with both operating with more than a single crew	CalMac Ferries Ltd (CFL) Gourock - Dunoon route

Please note that the operating day of a single crewed vessel is limited to the maximum hours that can be delivered by a single crew within the hours of work regulations and crew contractual agreements.

Where the table refers to ‘more than a single crew’ (Levels B, D, F and G), this could be a small additional crew complement to extend the day or a full second crew. The crewing model will be described in the narrative which follows.

The table below allocates the Oban - Craignure route to its relevant Route Service Level for both the winter and summer timetables, with commentary provided in the following sections.

Table 3.2: Allocation of Oban - Craignure route to levels

Timetable/Route Service Level	Level A	Level B	Level C	Level D	Level E	Level F	Level G
Winter	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No
Summer	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes

Categorisation of waters

The Oban - Craignure route operates in ‘open seas’ and thus is governed by The Merchant Shipping (Maritime Labour Convention) (Hours of Work) Regulations 2018. The provisions of this legislation are covered in Merchant Shipping Notice (MSN) 1877.

The key stipulations of MSN 1877 are as follows:

• On a sea-going vessel, the minimum hours of rest are:
  • 10-hours in any 24-hour period
  • 77-hours in any seven-day period (i.e., a maximum 91-hour week)
  • The 10-hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods, one of which is to be at least 6-hours in length
• It is also noted that, where a seafarer whose normal period of rest on board a ship is disturbed by a call-out, they should have a period of compensatory rest, as per the Merchant Shipping Notice MSN 1877 (M) Amendment 1

The Oban - Craignure route is operated by one ship from the ‘Major Vessel’ fleet (MV Isle of Mull) and one ship from the ‘Small Vessel’ fleet, MV Loch Frisa. 

On the ‘Major Vessels’ fleet, the crew live aboard and the operation is centred around a single live-aboard crew which operates on a two-weeks on, two-weeks off basis. The timetable is generally structured around the maximum number of hours that a single crew can operate on a daily and indeed weekly basis, in line with MSN 1877. The number of crew cabins on the ‘Major Vessel’ fleet is therefore a constraining factor on the number of crew which can be housed onboard and thus the level of service which can be operated. It is though possible on occasions to supplement the live-aboard crew with a small number of shore-based crew to extend the day in peak season. 

MV Loch Frisa is in the ‘Small Vessels’ fleet with shore-based crew, but still operates on the basis of MSN 1877. Crew operate on a one-week on, one-week off rotation.

Length of operating day

Winter

The tables below summarise the length of the operating day and week for the Oban – Craignure vessels, MV Isle of Mull and MV Loch Frisa.

Table 3.3(a): Vessel 1 (MV Isle of Mull) – Oban - Craignure, length of operating day – winter (hh:mm)

Day	Start-Up	Sailing-Day	Close Down	Length of operating day
Monday	1:00	11:05	1:00	13:05
Tuesday	1:00	10:35	1:00	12:35
Wednesday	1:00	10:35	1:00	12:35
Thursday	1:00	10:35	1:00	12:35
Friday	1:00	14:40	1:00	16:40
Saturday	1:00	14:15	1:00	16:15
Sunday	1:00	8:10	1:00	10:10
Total	7:00	79:55	7:00	93:55

Table 3.3(b): Vessel 2 (MV Loch Frisa) – Oban – Craignure, length of operating day – winter

Day	Start-Up	Sailing-Day	Close Down	Length of operating day
Monday	1:00	12:05	0:45	13:50
Tuesday	1:00	12:15	0:45	14:00
Wednesday	1:00	12:15	0:45	14:00
Thursday	1:00	12:15	0:45	14:00
Friday	1:00	16:20	0:45	18:05
Saturday	1:00	16:20	0:45	18:05
Sunday	1:00	9:40	0:45	11:25
Total	7:00	91:10	5:15:00	103:25

MV Isle of Mull operates with a single live aboard crew in winter. Whilst the service overall operates slightly above the 91-hour threshold, it is understood that crew breaks across the day mean that individual crew members do not exceed this regulatory threshold.

MV Loch Frisa operates with two crews on any given day, a dayshift and a backshift, which facilitates the long operating day. 

Summer

The tables below summarise the length of the standard summer operating day and week for the Oban - Craignure vessels, MV Isle of Mull and MV Loch Frisa: 

Table 3.4(a): Vessel 1 (MV Isle of Mull) – Oban - Craignure, length of operating day – summer (hh:mm)

Day	Start-Up	Sailing-Day	Close Down	Length of operating day
Monday	1:00	13:30	1:00	15:30
Tuesday	1:00	12:50	1:00	14:50
Wednesday	1:00	12:50	1:00	14:50
Thursday	1:00	12:50	1:00	14:50
Friday	1:00	16:10	1:00	18:10
Saturday	1:00	12:50	1:00	14:50
Sunday	1:00	11:10	1:00	13:10
Total	7:00	92:10	7:00	106:10

Table 3.4(b): Vessel 2 (MV Loch Frisa) – Oban - Craignure, length of operating day – summer (hh:mm)

Day	Start-Up	Sailing-Day	Close Down	Length of operating day
Monday	1:00	13:50	0:45	15:35
Tuesday	1:00	16:05	0:45	17:50
Wednesday	1:00	13:50	0:45	15:35
Thursday	1:00	13:50	0:45	15:35
Friday	1:00	13:50	0:45	15:35
Saturday	1:00	16:20	0:45	18:05
Sunday	1:00	12:00	0:45	13:45
Total	7:00	99:45	5:15	112:00

MV Isle of Mull operates on a broadly similar basis in summer and winter, with a single live aboard crew delivering the service. However, the extended operating day in summer is delivered through supplementing the core crew with a small number of shore-based crew, who return home in the evening. This allows sufficient periods of rest to be achieved across the entirety of the crew to deliver the timetable.

MV Loch Frisa operates on a two-crew basis as previously described, facilitating a lengthy summer operating day.

Route specific characteristics

• The Oban – Craignure route is the only one on the Clyde and Hebrides network that can be described as broadly operating the ‘Shetland model’, with a predominantly single crewed day vessel supplemented by shore-based crew where required (MV Isle of Mull) and a shift-based vessel (MV Loch Frisa). This allows for a long operating day which can be flexed by timetable period
• MV Isle of Mull is a closed-deck vessel and cannot carry certain categories of dangerous goods. When she previously operated the route in isolation in winter, these goods were routed via the Corran Ferry and Lochaline – Fishnish, with a sailing in the timetable on the latter route allocated specifically for this purpose. It is understood that this is now less of an issue than it once was, as MV Loch Frisa is open-deck (although is limited in terms of her CV capacity)
• The infrastructure at Craignure has a number of shortcomings which limit operational flexibility on this route. These include:
  • The pier is too short to routinely allow MV Isle of Mull to berth overnight at Craignure. It has also prevented the cascade of any larger vessels to the route, including MV Isle of Lewis and MV Hebrides, both of which have previously been considered as potential vessels which could serve this route in future
  • Allied to the wetside shortcomings, the vehicle marshalling area and passenger facilities at Craignure are too small for such a busy route. This is another factor which could limit the deployment of larger vessels

Step 2: Analysis of connectivity

This section summarises headline connectivity in terms of the number of ferry connections provided and time on-mainland and on-island. The interactive dashboard includes further detailed connectivity analysis, including information related to onward connectivity.

Winter Connections

The tables below summarise the first departure, last arrival, number of connections per day and time on mainland / island:

Table 3.5(a): Oban - Craignure winter timetable summary (Source: www.calmac.co.uk)

Sailing Details	Mon	Tues-Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
First departure	06:45	07:20	07:20	07:45	09:45
Last arrival	17:50	17:55	22:00	22:00	17:55
No. of sailings	6	7	9	8	5
Time on mainland	10:05	10:15	14:20	14:20	07:40
Time on island	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil

Table 3.5(b): Craignure - Oban winter timetable summary (Source: www.calmac.co.uk)

Sailing Details	Mon	Tues-Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
First departure	06:30	06:30	06:30	06:30	09:00
Last arrival	18:35	18:45	22:50	22:50	18:40
No. of sailings	6	7	9	8	5
Time on mainland	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil
Time on island	09:25	08:55	13:00	12:35	06:30

The key points of note from the above tables are as follows:

• There is variation in the Oban – Craignure service across the week. On a Monday, there are only six sailings in each direction with both vessels having one extended period of downtime over the day
• Tuesday to Thursday, MV Isle of Mull operates an additional sailing in the period where there is a gap on a Monday (12:25 ex Oban), providing seven return crossings per day across the two vessels
• The timetable is scaled-up on a Friday and Saturday to deliver nine return crossings, with late evening departures from Oban (21:50) and Craignure (21:10)
• Like most routes on the network, the Sunday service is reduced, with only five return crossings per day, of which only two are operated by MV Isle of Mull
• MV Loch Frisa operates a longer day across the week. As the Craignure-based vessel, this allows a longer time on mainland than on-island each day of the week. This is a major change from prior to the introduction of MV Loch Frisa, where the service was operated from Oban and thus time on mainland was limited
• The timetable facilitates a commutable day on mainland for Mull residents working in standard 09:00-17:00 employment, Sunday excepted
• Time on mainland and time on island are calculated from published timetables and may differ slightly from the interactive dashboard, which is based on actual departure and arrival times.

Summer Connections

The tables below summarise the first departure, last arrival, number of connections per day and time on mainland / island:

Table 3.6(a): Oban - Craignure summer timetable summary (Source: www.calmac.co.uk)

Sailing Details	Mon	Tue	Wed-Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
First departure	06:45	07:25	07:25	07:25	07:25	09:55
Last arrival	20:15	22:05	20:15	23:35	22:15	21:05
No. of sailings	10	11	10	11	11	8
Time on mainland	11:50	14:10	11:50	13:30	14:20	10:00
Time on island	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil

Table 3.6(b): Craignure - Oban summer timetable summary (Source: www.calmac.co.uk)

Sailing Details	Mon	Tue	Wed-Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
First departure	07:10	07:10	07:10	07:10	07:10	09:30
Last arrival	21:00	23:15	21:00	22:30	23:30	21:30
No. of sailings	10	11	10	11	11	8
Time on mainland	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil
Time on island	11:50	12:55	11:10	14:30	13:00	09:30

The key points of note from the above tables are as follows:

• The summer timetable is much more intensive than its winter equivalent, with more sailings on all days and extended operating days across the week
• On Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, there are 10 return crossings per day, supplemented on a Tuesday by an eleventh, with MV Loch Frisa operating late into the evening
• The timetable is also scaled-up on a Friday and Saturday to deliver eleven return crossings
• Whilst the Sunday service is still reduced, there are eight return crossings, up from five in the winter
• The pattern of time on-mainland and time on-island in the summer timetable period broadly reflects that of the winter timetable. However, available time is extended on almost all days due to the longer operating day provided

Connecting public transport

The interactive dashboard incorporates a detailed breakdown of onward connectivity from all ports on the network, including connecting bus and rail services and contour-based journey time mapping. Key headlines include:

• There are five Glasgow Queen Street – Oban trains per day in either direction. The relatively long gaps between trains mean that wait times can be long in Oban. The end-to-end journey time by train from Oban to Glasgow Queen Street is circa 3h15m
• Scottish Citylink operates six coach connections per day between Glasgow and Oban. The journey time is approximately three hours
• There are a range of local bus connections serving Oban and its hinterland, the 918 to Fort William and the number 5 to Appin for example
• West Coast Motors provides bus services from Craignure to Tobermory and Fionnphort which are timed to meet most ferry arrivals and departures

The figure below shows onward connectivity (drive times) by car from Oban and Craignure, up to a 120-minute journey time. This is broken down to journey times of 1-30 minutes (in green), 31-60 minutes (in yellow), 61-90 minutes (in amber) and 91-120 minutes (in red):

Step 3: Carryings, capacity utilisation and performance

This section sets out the key route headlines with regards to carryings, capacity utilisation and performance – described in the form of answers to questions. The data / charts underlying this commentary are included in Appendix A, and detailed route specific data, including sailing-by-sailing analysis, is provided in the interactive dashboard. The appendix covers the period to the end of calendar year 2022, as a full year of 2023 sailing-by-sailing data was not available at the time of its production.

What have been the key supply-side changes since 2014?

In order to understand recent route trends with regards to carryings, capacity utilisation and performance, it is important to record the primary supply-side changes over the last decade or so.

2015

• Road Equivalent Tariff (RET) was introduced onto the Oban – Craignure route in October 2015. This led to the average passenger and car fares being reduced by 34% and 62% respectively, with significant reductions in absolute terms. This can be seen on page 17 of Transport Scotland’s Evaluation of Road Equivalent Tariff on the Clyde and Hebridean Network.
• The reclassification of the length at which a vehicle is classed as commercial from five metres to six metres led to a 13% reduction in commercial vehicle (CV) and coach carryings in the first full year of RET, as some goods that would previously have travelled in HGVs switched to vans. This in part accounts for some of the increase in car carryings on the route (see below). This can be seen on page 27 of Transport Scotland’s Evaluation of Road Equivalent Tariff on the Clyde and Hebridean Network.

2016

• MV Coruisk was added to the route as a second vessel in the summer months, the first time that the Oban – Craignure route had routinely operated with two vessels. This led to a significant increase in the number of annual sailings on the route from circa 4,000 in 2015 to circa 5,500 in 2016
• Moreover, as a much smaller vessel than MV Isle of Mull, MV Coruisk could safely overnight at Craignure, providing an early morning service off-island and mid to late evening sailing back to Mull. This provided the much sought after ‘commutable service’ for the Mull community, but its benefit was limited to summer only
• MV Coruisk was repositioned to the Firth of Clyde for the winter timetable period as she was not certified to operate the Oban – Craignure route in winter

2022

• MV Loch Frisa was introduced to the route on a year-round basis in June 2022. This provided a dedicated Craignure-based vessel and facilitated the year-round commutable service. This increased total annual sailings on the route to just shy of 6,000. MV Coruisk returned to Mallaig – Armadale for the summer season

2023

• The ‘Islander Priority Pilot’ was introduced on this route (as well as on Oban – Coll / Tiree) and entailed holding back 10% of vehicle deck capacity until 72-hours prior to departure, enabling essential ‘last minute’ resident vehicle travel to be accommodated

How have carryings changed over time?

• Passenger carryings had been growing strongly prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing by 14% between 2014 and 2019. However, passenger numbers have not fully recovered from the pandemic, standing at only 84% of their 2019 level in 2022
• Car carryings grew particularly strongly following the introduction of RET in October 2015 and, by 2019, were 51% higher than in 2014. Car carryings have also not fully recovered their 2019 level, but the recovery was stronger than for passengers, standing at 92% of their 2019 level in 2022
• As with many routes on the network, the reclassification of the length at which a vehicle is defined as ‘commercial’ from five metres to six metres when RET was introduced has led to a sharp reduction in the number of CVs carried. There were 22% fewer CVs carried in 2019 than 2014 and the downward trend has continued post-pandemic
• Coach traffic is more prominent on the Oban – Craignure route than it is on most other routes. The number of coaches carried increased marginally pre-pandemic but, like other carrying types, has reduced to 72% of its pre-pandemic level
• The Oban – Craignure route overall is therefore one on which carryings grew strongly pre-pandemic (CVs excepted) but have not yet recovered their pre-pandemic level (with only car carryings now above their 2014 level)

How has reliability and punctuality changed over time?

• Despite increasing the overall number of sailings, the introduction of MV Coruisk in 2016 led to a reduction in the proportion of delayed sailings
• The number of cancelled sailings has steadily increased since 2019, likely reflecting the network-wide challenges of fleet and infrastructure age. For example, in 2023, MV Isle of Mull had a breakdown in early January en-route back from drydock and was also redeployed for the early part of the summer timetable due to breakdowns elsewhere in the fleet
• In the last full pre-pandemic year (2019), there was a sharp increase in the number of late sailings on the route. Demand was its highest in this year, and this therefore likely reflects delays to vessel turnaround

Why are sailings cancelled?

• As is common across most routes, the primary cause of cancellations is adverse weather, a particular issue in 2015 and 2018. Mechanical problems are seemingly becoming more prevalent as MV Isle of Mull and the infrastructure in particular get older

Why are sailings delayed?

• This route has a particularly high volume of foot passengers in the summer months. This is driven by organised coach tours to Iona and Tobermory (or people travelling as foot passengers to use connecting service buses to these destinations). The 09:55 departure from Oban and the 15:40 / 17:05 departures from Craignure are understood to be the most pressured sailings in this respect
• The very high summer passenger volumes, combined with high vehicle loadings, can put pressure on vessel turnaround times and therefore punctuality
• Indeed, a growing challenge on the Oban – Craignure route has been an increase in sailings delayed due to compromised turnaround times. Prior to the introduction of MV Coruisk in 2016, ‘Loading Delay / Loading Related Delay’ was the primary source of delay. This was reduced (but not eliminated) when MV Coruisk was introduced 
• Since 2016 however, ‘Knock-on delay’, where one late running sailing affects the next has become an increasingly prevalent problem
• Operational issues, which covers all matters related to sailings, such as the berth not being free or a slower vessel being used during refit, and adverse weather are also common causes of delay on this route

How many days per year do services operate to timetable?

• Since 2017 (and excluding the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021), between 50% and 60% of days have operated to timetable (i.e., all sailings on that day arrived on time)
• The Oban – Craignure route is however very intensively operated, and a better measure here is the percentage of individual sailings operated to time. This has generally been around 90% since MV Coruisk was introduced in 2016, increasing from circa 86% prior to that despite an overall increase in the number of sailings

How often has the vehicle deck been full or nearly full?

2014-2022

• The growth in car and van traffic on the Oban – Craignure route has led to a progressively increasing number of ‘high utilisation’ sailings, which CFL has historically classified as being over 70% full. This is despite the introduction of a second summer vessel in 2016 (MV Coruisk) and a permanent second vessel (MV Loch Frisa) in 2022
• Of particular note has been the continuous growth (pandemic excepted) of sailings which are between 90%-100% utilised – these are effectively ‘full’ to all intents and purposes

2022 by month

• Analysis of capacity utilisation by month highlights that vehicle deck capacity was a persistent problem over the summer timetable period in 2022. Between April and October, more than 30% of sailings in every month were effectively full to capacity
• From May through to September 2022, over 65% of all sailings were classed as ‘high utilisation’ – i.e., where the vehicle deck is more 70% full
• It should be noted that a shortage of passenger capacity on this route is not routinely an issue, especially on MV Isle of Mull, which has a higher passenger certificate than MV Loch Frisa. There are however a small number of sailings in the peak summer season when coach tour traffic can lead to high passenger utilisation sailings – the 09:55 departure from Oban and the 15:40 / 17:05 from Craignure are understood to be the most pressured in this respect