£7.5m ferry costs strengthen tunnels case
A NORTH Isles councillor says the fact that over £7.5 million will be spent on maintaining inter island ferries by the end of this decade highlights the urgency of looking into building fixed link bridges or tunnels.
Robert Henderson was speaking after members of the Full Council heard on Wednesday that maintenance work to extend the life of the Bigga, Geira and Fivla ferries between now and 2017 will cost £4.9 million.
The SIC is already in the midst of a £1 million project to maintain the Leirna. A further £1.7 million is to be spent on ensuring the Hendra ferry remains fit for purpose by 2019.
The notion of building tunnels to connect islands such as Bressay, Yell, Unst and Whalsay to the Shetland mainland has been kicking around since councillors and officials visited Faroe on a fact finding mission back in 2007.
Since then there has been a strong consensus within Lerwick Town Hall that fixed links, most likely tunnels, are the way forward.
Not only would they bring added convenience for islanders who would be unshackled from their reliance on ferry timetables, but maintenance costs to the local authority would shrink considerably.
But the high capital outlay – which some estimate to be in excess of £300 million for four tunnels – required for such projects remains a stumbling block. Henderson has previously suggested that Norwegian investors may be willing to back tunnel-building projects with low-cost finance.
Infrastructure director Maggie Sandison is carrying out a piece of research at the moment, and Henderson said it was high time experts from Norway or Faroe were brought to Shetland to provide advice.
“Just to refit the ferries we’re looking at budgets of nearly £6 million in the next couple of years to give them a life extension,” he said, “and I feel that we should be looking more at providing fixed links to allow communities to move from place to place without involving ferries.”
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Lerwick South member Jonathan Wills agreed, saying the price tag of maintaining vessels “underlines how sensible it would be to look at tunnels if we can”.
He added: “I see the Faroese are not holding back.”
That was in reference to a cross-party decision which will see the Faroese treasury shelling out an estimated 260 million Euros, by far the largest single investment ever made in the islands, on two new tunnels between now and 2024.
A state owned company will finance and manage the tunnels using tolls. Because of varying traffic levels, one of the two tunnels is expected to make a high profit and the other a large deficit. That is why the two projects are being dealt with simultaneously.
A 7km tunnel will connect the largest bay in Faroe, Skalafjorour, directly to Torshavn. A similar sized tunnel would be required to connect Whalsay to the Shetland Mainland. A longer 11km tunnel will connect the island of Sandoy, currently only accessible by ferry, to the islands’ capital.
Speaking during Wednesday’s meeting, Henderson said repair costs would be a burden for as long as ferries continued to be used.
“I think we’re at the stage now where we should be getting some expert advice from Norway, Faroe – somebody to come here and give us the lowdown on the whole thing, and see what’s achievable.”
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