The £70m project for new ferries and harbours serving Kilcreggan, Dunoon and Gourock ‘could prove abortive’, it was revealed today.
Costs for the three new ferries, as well as pontoons and breakwaters to accommodate them, have spiralled – but officials have pressed on despite widespread public opposition.
Last week it was revealed here that the three new ferries would not be in service until 2026, three years later than planned.
And today a key meeting was told that the project was ‘paused’ because of uncertainty over Transport Scotland funding for the vessels – the cost of the new ferries has doubled, to £28m.
Work on ‘Kilcreggan Harbour’ has now risen by 777% to £9.6m, while a new breakwater in Dunoon is expected to cost £6.8m and Gourock Harbour would cost £26m.
Read more: Public rejected ferry designs – then survey results were kept secret
Argyll and Bute Council’s marine operations manager Scott Reid gave an update to the authority’s harbour board this afternoon.
“Ground investigation works for Dunoon and Kilcreggan although on pause are ready to go, the preparation works for those have been done,” he said.
“One of the things I can say is that the Dunoon and Kilcreggan programme at the moment is currently paused, waiting for Transport Scotland to finalise work on funding for the vessels, so that is a Transport Scotland process that is required before significant funds are further engaged in that, which hopefully not, but may well prove to be abortive or significantly change the scope of the project.”
Asked by Cllr Jim Lynch how the pause might be, Mr Reid said Transport Scotland’s needs-based assessment was ‘still ongoing’, while its investment and decision making board would have to approve funding for the vessels.
“We don’t have the timescale for that,” he said: “What I can say though is that it was intended to be to be publicised before now.
“It could well be imminent, it could be any time at all.”
The initial estimate of plans to replace Kilcreggan’s 125 year-old wooden pier was £1.1m.
The public has rejected the preferred option for ‘Dunoon Harbour’, while Argyll and Bute Council has still not revealed the results of the Kilcreggan consultation – which closed nearly six months ago.
More than 1,100 people have joined a Facebook group created by the Save Kilcreggan Pier campaign, which was launched because of fears that the council would not maintain the historic pier if it was no longer used by ferries.
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