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Council consider Burwick terminal issues
Councillors at Tuesday’s meeting of Orkney Islands Council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee considered a further report from Officials on the request by Pentland Ferries Ltd to lease Burwick Terminal.
The report reviewed the main issues which the Council, as local Transport Authority, would need to consider before making a decision about the terminal’s future use.
Despite requests, only limited information on passenger numbers has been received from Pentland Ferries. A letter was sent to the Managing Director in June requesting further information as indicated by the Committee but, to date, no response has been received.
The information received to date is not enough to enable the key issues to be addressed.
The report also covered wide ranging issues which would have to be considered carefully before any decision is made. Despite the report being held in private, the Council felt it was important to let the public know exactly what issues have to be considered before any decision is reached. The issues covered in the report were:
- The Impact on Lifeline Service
The existence of a lifeline service between Stromness and Scrabster, franchised and subsidised by the Scottish Executive, is based on the fact that there is no commercially operated service providing a regular, reliable and safe connection between Orkney and the Scottish Mainland, at affordable fares. If such a service existed, the continuation of a designated lifeline service would be in question.
The actions the Council takes with respect to Pentland Ferries’ request could have significant consequences, as improving the attractiveness of this route would question whether the Council wishes the short crossing to be the principal ferry route to the mainland – which could remove the justification for a subsidised lifeline service.
- Issues relating to Disposal Of Asset
In the context of a growing short sea ferry crossing, Burwick, arguably being the best placed port, is potentially a valuable asset. The Council is legally required to ensure that it achieves the best possible price in the disposal of any public asset. It could not therefore dispose of Burwick, by way of sale or lease, to one commercial interest, at a concessionary price.
Also, leasing Burwick to one commercial ferry operator, which also controlled the nearest port in Caithness, could potentially give that company an eventual monopoly position in respect of the shortest sea route between Orkney and the mainland, without having in place all the agreements about frequencies, maximum fares, passenger comfort, consultation, and provision of information, which pertain to the lifeline route.
This would effectively be an acceptance that the short crossing was Orkney’s lifeline route.
- Issues relating to Improvements at Burwick
There is a possibility that the Council might itself wish to improve facilities at Burwick, to its own plan and its own standards, making the improved facilities available to any user.
Considerable civil works would be involved in creating a safe harbour at Burwick. The Council would have to undertake a substantial amount of new work to develop a costed plan for improving Burwick.
Such a project would require substantial Scottish Executive support and would have to be prioritised against other projects, such as new investment in ferries and terminals for the inter-isles ferry service. It is unlikely that the Scottish Executive would provide any grant assistance for improvements to Burwick.
- Safety Considerations for the Harbour Authority
The Council would remain the competent Harbour Authority for Burwick even if harbour facilities were leased, and would still be responsible for the safety of operations within the harbour area. Extreme caution would be needed in considering a lease to operate as no formal risk assessment or simulation of port entry has been carried out recently by Harbours Department.
The Committee recommended that further consideration of the request by Pentland Ferries Ltd to lease Burwick Terminal should be deferred until all the relevant information has been received, and that the Director of Development Services should contact the company with a view to obtaining further details of their plans for future operations.
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