Craignure's Passenger Access System to be scrapped
CMAL is set to scrap Craignure Pier’s Passenger Access System (PAS), a move which has been branded as ’unnecessary and dangerous’ by critics from Mull and Iona Ferry Committee.
CMAL confirmed on August 4, after months of deliberation, that the PAS was to be dismantled, with none of its parts reused.
The PAS had been out of commision since April, after a defect was identified in a winch.
Since then, all foot traffic on Mull’s ferries has been required to use the vehicle deck. This was already the standard for the island’s secondary vessel the MV Loch Frisa, but not for its main vessel the MV Isle of Mull.
With the permanent removal of the PAS, car deck access will continue for the time being as Argyll and Bute Council has confirmed it has not yet decided a course of action.
A council spokesperson said: “We are working with CalMac to identify a suitable interim option for foot passenger access. In the meantime, Calmac will continue to manage passenger access to MV Isle of Mull via the car deck at an operational level at the port.
"Operations are being managed as efficiently as possible by frontline CalMac staff, while ensuring the safety of the travelling public, port staff and vessel crews.”
Critics from Mull and Iona Ferry Committee say they have "little confidence" that the council will opt for a new system, after it dropped the tender for one in 2025.
The Committee has also warned of the dangers continued use of the car deck could pose.
In a statement the committee claimed that many injuries and one hospitalisation have already occurred as a result of foot passengers using the car deck.
The statement continued: "It seems that CMAL’s eagerness to remove equipment from their risk register is more important than true passenger safety and service in-the-round.
"This is a cynical decision made for CMAL’s benefit, not users. It is also far more costly. Just removing the old PAS is very likely to be more expensive than repairing it."
The Committee also claimed that CMAL’s reasons for removing the PAS were not valid.
CMAL determined that the works required extended "beyond repair or replacement" of a single winch, as it believed the damaged part could have affected more of the overall system.
It said in email correspondence with Mull and Iona Ferry Committee that the repair would require it to completely dismantle and inspect numerous parts of the system.
This factor, combined with CMAL’s internal understanding of Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidelines, led CMAL to determine that the repair was actually "a refurbishment".
A refurbishment would require CMAL to bring the entire system up to modern safety standards, a cost it was not willing to put on the public purse.
The Craignure PAS was originally built in 2011 out of parts of old infrastructure and was intended as a temporary measure. But Argyll and Bute Council, which owns the pier, never made a new system.
In a statement, CMAL said: "As owner of the PAS, CMAL has concluded that the most appropriate course of action is to dismantle and remove the structure from Craignure Pier at the earliest opportunity. This will allow a wide range of alternative passenger access options from the pier deck to be considered."
The Mull and Iona Ferry Committee said: "What is described by CMAL is very clearly repair to its original ‘as-built’ condition, and therefore new standards are not applicable.
"We have consulted with several qualified and experienced engineers, and all have agreed with us. If CMAL simply fixed the damaged winch and undertook any other repairs necessary, the PAS would be just as safe and legally compliant as it was before the breakdown."
CMAL says it will now engage specialist suppliers to undertake the dismantling and removal works, and will provide a timeline at a later date.
If the council does not opt to build a new PAS, which is likely given that it dropped the tender for one in 2025 due to costs being "significantly higher than originally estimated", Craignure will continue to operate without one until a new pier is built.
Currently the new Pier and Ferry Terminal is expected to be completed by January 2029 at a cost of around £100 million.
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