Islands Connectivity Plan

Scope and Purpose

The purpose of the Islands Connectivity Plan (ICP) is to set out how ferry services, supported by other transport modes, will be delivered, and strengthened, working towards a long-term vision, and supported by clear priorities and defined outcomes for people and places.

The Islands Connectivity Plan will build on the Ferries Plan 2013-2022. The Figure 1 sets out the structure of the ICP that is informed by current Scottish Government and Transport Scotland policies set out in the:

• SG Purpose and Outcomes (National Planning Framework 4, Climate Change Update Plan)
• National Transport Strategy 2 (NTS2)
• National Islands Plan (NIP)
• Second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2).

A summary of these documents can be found in Annex A.

This Strategic Approach paper is one part of the Islands Connectivity Plan and proposes our overall Strategic Approach to island transport connectivity including ferries, aviation, fixed links and, especially, addressing the strategic challenges facing CHFS and NIFS services. The Strategic Approach paper can be applied to all domestic ferry services while respecting the autonomy of local authorities to develop their own standards and their accountability to local electorates for the design and delivery of ferry services for which they are responsible.

The ICP includes a series of delivery plans being developed in parallel to ensure that there is coherence between them and will include the following elements, that are already in progress, for CHFS and the NIFS and the CMAL fleet:

• Vessels and Ports Plan
• (Refreshed) Community Needs Assessments
• Ferry Fares Policy
• Low Carbon
• Onwards and Connecting Travel

Alongside this draft paper, we are publishing the first of these delivery plans: a draft Vessels and Ports Plan (VPP) for the CHFS and NIFS networks. We welcome views on both of these draft documents as part of the public consultation exercise.

Island Transport Connectivity

Island transport connectivity is, at its simplest, the safe, reliable and efficient movement of people, goods and services to support sustainable communities and populations. This Islands Connectivity Plan seeks to address existing challenges, in particular the reliability and resilience of ferry services and will also look to identify and consider future transport connectivity challenges and opportunities.

The future is predicted to see poorer weather and an increased number of severe weather events – this will mean an increased risk of disruption to transport networks everywhere including to, from and on islands. Vessel and port design can seek to mitigate these impacts but will never remove them entirely. Therefore, resilience planning for island communities will be essential going forward as will service planning by transport operators to include the restoration of essential services and supplies, whether by air or sea or fixed links.

Scotland’s first ever National Islands Plan was published in 2019 and provides a framework for action in order to meaningfully improve outcomes for island communities. The Plan sets out 13 strategic objectives to address population decline; improve and promote sustainable economic development; and improve outcomes in areas such as housing, health, education, environment, climate change and energy.

The National Islands Plan is now going through its first review which may lead to the publication of a new Plan but it is likely that transport will remain a critical issue for island communities. This Islands Connectivity Plan will contribute to the delivery of the current National Islands Plan and any likely new Plan but will also aim to anticipate its success and respond to any new challenges and opportunities it may bring.

The level of future island transport demand will depend on several factors – in particular it will be impacted by future development planning and by the availability of goods and services on islands. Sustainable island communities will be able to access more goods and services, such as healthcare, without the need for personal travel to and from the mainland and, in some cases, other islands. The same, as well as opportunities created by improved digital connectivity, will apply to work, education and training, particularly where this currently requires regular and frequent commuting to and from an island.

This would see a successful island generating less demand for travel off-island rather than more. However, growing islands’ economies may require adapting transport connectivity to the particular economic growth sectors on each island.

How people travel will also change. Planning for the future of island transport connectivity should reflect those changes as well as be consistent with the Vision set out in the National Transport Strategy.

In particular, the implementation of this ICP will aim to improve opportunities for people to travel to and from islands without their own vehicle. This could be through public transport, active travel or car clubs, or other forms of car-sharing in anticipation of the rise of “mobility as a service” across the transport system as well as the delivery of the Government’s commitment to reduce car kilometres by 20%. This means that more people will be able to travel on the existing public transport services without the need to increase vehicle deck capacity, bringing economic, social and environmental benefits to islands and reducing public spending on ferries. While many people will choose to continue using their own car to access ferry services, transport connectivity will be available to all, including those without access to a car or those who prefer to travel without one.

Future island transport connectivity will consider all options. Aviation has the potential to play an increased role, offering rapid personal travel and good onward connectivity to the rest of Scotland and also to the rest of the world. It can provide lower carbon travel when new technologies and fuels are certified for use on scheduled flights. In the longer-term, additional fixed links could offer a high level of transport connectivity, albeit at a substantial upfront cost. There could also be opportunities for more freight ferries (or freight-only services) and passenger only ferries alongside vehicle ferries, providing alternative services which better reflect the transport needs of some people and businesses. 

Whilst island transport connectivity will change, the importance of putting people and place at the heart of decision-making will not. Communities will be listened to and decision-making will be clear. Decisions by government, private companies and the wider public sector should be transparent and be informed by a wide range of voices.

Ferries

Ferry services provide the main transport connection for most of our island communities and are, therefore, the main focus of this paper. This paper proposes a draft Vision supported by four Priorities for the future of ferry services in Scotland. The Vision describes where we want to get to in the future and will guide long-term planning and decision-making and, with the Priorities, will provide high-level targets for us to monitor and review progress against.

Some local authorities and private operators are responsible for their own ferry services and are encouraged to adopt the Vision and Priorities, when finalised, as an example of our shared desire for ferry services across Scotland.

The priorities are based on listening to communities that use the services as well as the views of the ferry operators and other stakeholders. In this paper we also set out actions and proposals related to the key issues which communities have told us about. Crucially we were told by ferry-dependent communities that, of these issues, reliability and resilience of ferry services matters most.

To achieve this, our draft Vessels and Ports Plan focuses on improving technical and weather reliability by modernising the CMAL fleet and building the resilience of the network by increasing standardisation of vessels and ports.

A substantial modernisation of the fleet, and accompanying port upgrades, will improve reliability and resilience, giving our ferry-dependent communties more certainty with planning their travel, on how long a journey will take, and that it will be a simple and comfortable experience. The confidence we will have in our journey will enable us to plan our lives, to access education and health services, to get to work on time, to deliver goods and services efficiently and to keep households, communities and businesses running smoothly.

Vision and Priorities

The Vision and Priorities for ferries below are a result of collaboration between Transport Scotland and key stakeholders. They were informed by the communities who have provided feedback during a number of engagements and consultations with Transport Scotland and the resulting key themes set out later in this Paper as well as relevant Scottish Government strategies.

Ferry services, supported by other transport services, play an important part in providing transport connectivity to Scottish islands as well as delivering the National Transport Strategy and the National Islands Plan.

Our Vision is underpinned by the four Priorities below.

Priority 1: Reliable and Resilient

Reliable and resilient ferry services that meet the needs of communities and businesses and support the transition to a well-being economy which is fair, green and growing.

Priority 2: Accessible

Ferry services that are accessible and provide easy to use and affordable transport connectivity for all users.

Priority 3: Integrated

Ferry services that enable sustainable and active travel choices which support our health and well-being and make our island and other ferry-dependent communities great places to live, work and visit.

Priority 4: Low Carbon

Ferry services that take actions to reduce the negative environmental impact of their operations and help to achieve Scotland's net-zero targets.

Community Needs Assessments

To work towards our Vision and Priorities, we need to know the transport connectivity needed by each community and whether these needs are being met by ferries and other transport connections.

Central to the Ferries Plan was a series of Community Needs Assessments (CNAs) carried out using a consistent methodology. Following feedback, we have reviewed and updated the methodology. Local authorities and others who are responsible for the design and operation of their own services will be able, but not required, to use the same methodology when considering their own services. 

These assessments will look at how and why people use ferries as well as fixed links, air services and onward and connecting travel. The options identified to address transport connectivity problems for each island or peninsula community could include aviation, fixed links and onward and connecting travel as well as ferries. This will recognise whether responsibility for these services rests with private operators or local authorities, who would then be responsible for considering service changes as appropriate. Community Needs Assessments also provide the opportunity for considering future options for the number and size of vessels and will form part of our consideration of the Value for Money of options for ferry services and, in the longer-term, fixed link proposals (see below), whilst recognising that many of the wider benefits of ferry services cannot easily be quantified or monetised.

Transport Scotland commissioned Stantec UK Ltd to undertake our first Community Needs Assessment for Cowal and Rosneath. This has recently been finalised and is intended for publication in the coming months.

This exercise will analyse data from the CHFS and NIFS ferry operators and other sources. For each existing CHFS or NIFS route, this study will:

• categorise the current timetabled route service level
• identify the route connectivity provided by the service in both summer and winter and integration with onward and connecting travel
• analyse service performance, including consideration of reliability, punctuality, carryings, capacity utilisation.

We will use this information as the starting point for transport needs assessments for each community. This work will identify options to address issues and opportunities for changes to current services by engaging with communities and other stakeholders. We will commission these studies during 2024.

Funding and Financial Sustainability

The costs of providing ferry services are high and rising – this is creating an affordability challenge for both the Scottish Government and local authorities. We are in a period of sustained financial challenge, and it will be unsustainable to continue to increase funding of ferry services at the same rate as has been done in recent years. The successful implementation of this Islands Connectivity Plan can only be achieved by establishing a secure and sustainable long-term financial foundation for our ferry networks.

The Islands Connectivity Plan will contribute to that by providing robust and up-to-date community needs assessments. These studies will enable consideration of a range of service and investment options for each community and will provide evidence to support what are expected to be difficult decisions on prioritisation. These decisions will be based on Value for Money analyses that take properly into account the wider societal value of transport connectivity.

As set out in this draft paper, we will also be considering how different modes, such as aviation, and different approaches, such as freight services, passenger services and improved integration with onward and connecting travel, can help the financial sustainability of our ferry networks. Financial sustainability will enable confident forward planning – not just by government, operators and asset-owners but by communities and island businesses.

The total annual operating cost for providing CHFS and NIFS services has increased by around 65% over the last decade. These costs are met from fares paid by users, other revenue (e.g., from on-board retail sales) and by grants from Transport Scotland. The majority of these costs are paid by the Government to ferry operators and to vessel and port owners. Additionally, the Scottish Government has provided more than £178 million between 2018-19 and 2023-24 to the four local authorities that have responsibility for ferries. In the Scottish Budget for 2023-24, £440 million was allocated for the operation of ferry services of which £210.8 million was allocated to Transport Scotland for capital spending, mainly on vessels and ports.

With public spending to remain constrained, decision-makers in both national and local government will need to make transparent and objective spending and investment decisions. These decisions will need to be based on agreed priorities and affordability. For the CHFS and NIFS networks, we propose, in line with our first Priority, to ensure that the ferry services which communities depend on are reliable and resilient so that residents, businesses and visitors can have confidence in these.

Our proposed approach to the prioritisation of investment in these services is set out in the draft Vessels and Ports Plan.

Aviation

Air travel is the quickest and often the most convenient way to travel to and from our island communities and it can also be more environmentally friendly than travelling by ferry and car. For many, particularly in the Northern Isles and the Hebrides, the air service is vital as it enables travel for healthcare, education, business, and other essential services. For some islands, air travel is the only means of ensuring a single day trip to the mainland and it can also reduce the overall cost of travel by not requiring overnight stays as ferry trips often do. Aviation also opens up onward connections to other domestic and international destinations, which provides a vital contribution to local economies through tourism and trade. Air travel can also offer greater resilience in bad weather.

Air services connecting islands to the Scottish mainland are provided by commercial operators but some services, including many inter-island services, are supported by Transport Scotland or local authorities. Services are also supported by airports that are publicly owned by Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL) or by local authorities. Scottish Government funding means that HIAL’s airport charges are kept lower than they would otherwise be, enabling the operation of commercial air services to the islands. Islanders’ personal travel is supported through the Highlands and Islands Air Discount Scheme, which offers a significant reduction in the core air fare on eligible routes. Scottish Government funding also means that eligible residents of Barra, Tiree and Coll pay ‘islander fares’ - which are lower than those paid by non-residents – for the air services between Glasgow and Barra and Tiree.

In 2021 we commissioned a comparative study of air and ferry services on the CHFS and NIFS networks. This found that:

• For those travelling alone, using the ferry and public transport is generally slower but cheaper than using ferry and car or air and public transport.
• For those travelling as a group, using the ferry and a car becomes more competitive.
• Flying tends to be a more popular choice for longer journeys.
• Ferry travel is more seasonal than air travel probably reflecting the choices of tourist visitors for car and ferry travel.

The Scottish Government is committed to working to decarbonise scheduled flights within Scotland by 2040. Aviation manufacturers are developing low/zero emission hydrogen and electric aircraft, which are most likely to be used initially on shorter routes. This opens up the potential for flights to and between islands to become more frequent, lower cost and to emit far fewer emissions. When these new aviation technologies are in use on scheduled services there could also be a significant impact on future demand for ferry services. When this happens, changes to the supply of air services will be taken account of by future community needs assessments.

The Scottish Government recently undertook a public consultation on developing an aviation strategy that included various questions on air travel and connectivity within the Highlands and Islands. We will publish our further actions on aviation soon and will ensure that all measures relating to the Highlands and Islands are complementary to the ICP. Furthermore, the Community Needs Assessments that we will undertake will take into account the vital role that aviation plays in providing island connectivity.

Fixed Links

Where fixed links (bridges, tunnels and causeways to islands and roads to peninsulas) are already in place in Scotland they provide a very high level of road transport connectivity. There are also other locations where new fixed links are either proposed or being considered.

Transport Scotland’s second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2) considered a large number of proposals for new fixed links to communities served by existing CHFS and NIFS services. It concluded that replacing ferry services with fixed links can improve reliability, connectivity, capacity and travel times, and allow for the wider reconfiguration of ferry services. It recommended further work to look at 3 potential links to replace current CHFS services:

• Sound of Harris - linking the Uists and Harris/Lewis
• Sound of Barra - linking Barra and the Uists
• Mull and the Scottish mainland

However, island communities have expressed mixed views about the potential fixed links noted in the STPR2 with some concerned about a loss of island identity, increased road traffic and subsequent environmental impact and a reduction in local services due to the connection being both on and off the island.

We will now undertake a more detailed appraisal to study the benefits, costs, and challenges of these proposals and will include engagement with the directly affected communities to understand if the fixed link proposals are supported by the communities themselves. Part of the ICP Community Needs Assessment work set out earlier in this paper will support these studies by setting out community travel needs.

Due consideration will be given to bridges, tunnels and causeways before selecting the most suitable option for each of these routes. The focus will be on providing a resilient connection for our island communities who wish to be connected.

Until fixed links are operational, ferries will remain a crucial link in islands connectivity. Therefore, as set out in our draft Vessels and Ports Plan, we will maintain existing ferry services and plan for the introduction of replacement vessels when these are due.

Proposals have been presented for fixed links across other key routes by local authorities, communities and action groups. While these remain the responsibility of local councils and authorities, we will continue to support and engage with them on these proposals.

Onward and Connecting Travel

Most passenger journeys to or from our islands or peninsular communities will combine an air or ferry trip with public transport (such as train or bus), active travel (walking, wheeling, or cycling), car hire, or lifts/taxis for drop off and/or pick up. Encouraging use of the transport network in this way – without the need to take a private vehicle – has multiple benefits:

• for users (improves accessibility including for those who have no access to a vehicle).
• for wider populations (cleaner air, lower noise levels and less congestion).
• for connecting services and businesses (creates more commercially viable services as well as need for additional services and businesses such as bike hire, car hire/clubs, taxi).
• for the ferries network itself (supports efficient use of the deck space, enables more freight capacity, allows faster turnarounds with less vehicles to load/unload, reduces the need for larger future vessels enabling associated carbon reduction benefit).

For all these reasons, we are keen to support activities to encourage an increase in the percentage of non-vehicle ferry passengers and will do so as part of the Onwards and Connecting Travel element of the ICP. Well-integrated onward and connecting travel was highlighted by ferry-dependent communities as a key enabler for more sustainable island transport connectivity. This was raised by ferry stakeholders as being of particular importance for people with disabilities to enable them to make the journey in the first place.