Fixed link expert says Shetland tunnels are ‘deliverable’
COWI’s Andy Sloan also said it could take around eight years to deliver a tunnel to Yell
TUNNELS in Shetland “can be reality” – with the engineering feasibility “without question”.
That is the view of Andy Sloan, the executive vice president of consultancy firm COWI, which has been working with Shetland Islands Council (SIC) on the prospect of tunnels.
He was speaking at a meeting of Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee this morning (Wednesday) as part of its inquiry into Scottish fixed links.
COWI has been working on a modelling project for a potential tunnel for Yell Sound, which has included engagement with contractors and external financiers.
Sloan explained that as part of this work an advanced design for a Yell Sound tunnel was taken to three contractors – one in Norway, and two in Austria.
The council has now received estimated costs for a Yell Sound tunnel, which would cover a distance of just over 6.5km, but these are not available publicly yet.
It also comes as a wider review of Shetland’s inter-island transport looks at potential tunnels to Yell, Unst, Whalsay and Bressay, as well as ferry replacements on other routes.
An outline business case is set to be presented to councillors at the end of June where decisions will be made about options for each route.
The key question around tunnels has always been finances, but Sloan said that COWI had already gone out to funders to gauge their thoughts on Shetland tunnels.
He told MPs that the conclusion was that they were indeed investable pieces of infrastructure.
Sloan also revealed that it could take around eight years in total to deliver a tunnel for Yell Sound.
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When asked for any early findings from the Yell Sound study, Sloan said it was the first project of its kind that explores how tunnels could be delivered in a Scottish context.
He added that the SIC “is in the best position that any community has ever been in to deliver fixed links”.
Sloan said they are deliverable – “this is not something that is intangible”.
He also told the committee that in his view the SIC could deliver tunnels by setting up a “lean delivery agency”.
Sloan said this would have mature forms of contract that would allow some elements of risk sharing, partly with the contractor.
The meeting also heard that contractors have already said they would be willing to work in Shetland.
Sloan further said that maintenance of tunnels could be financed through charging drivers to use them in a toll scheme.
He said he has been looking at the feasibility of tunnels in Shetland for nearly 20 years, adding that te technique which would be employed would be “drill and blast”.
Sloan said tunnels in Shetland would be similar to the much-heralded ones in Faroe.
With lower traffic volumes in the islands, he said tunnels in Shetland would be of a “simple design” in a wider context.
Sloan said fixed links in Shetland would be “transformative” which could lead to increased prosperity and tackling population challenges.
He told MPs that in some ways the “loss of the island feel” could be an issue, but it is not something he hears very often.
The key issue, Sloan added, is the political will – in London and Edinburgh – given that the engineering feasibility is “without question”.
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