I’m looking forward to hearing what ficklejade has to say, as an island resident.
It looks like MHs over a certain length are to lose the Road Equivalent Tariff fare reduction so that commercial traffic (bringing food, building materials, fuel) can have the RET reduction instead. But I might have read that wrong.
The RET came in when we were in Europe.
Personally, I'm in favour of reducing fares for commercials and this would benefit visitors too over time as it would be less expensive to bring essentials over to the island. I don't know anyone who really celebrated the cheaper fares for MHs when RET came round as we had the experiences of the islands who had RET before us, although cheaper fares for us were very welcome. £40 reduction on a return Craignure Oban! But that was also an issue as more island folk went over with their vehicles more often causing pressure on space. Covid and the measures taken to try and protect people has led to even more problems with ferry space and with our second boat on the Oban run being smaller than the Coruisk, this won't ease the situation.
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
Very Informative link, thank you.
I can’t see that price increase reducing the number of MHs. It’s only an extra c.£10 on the single fare to Mull for our <6m vehicle. The recent increases in the cost of a tank of diesel is more than that.
I hadn’t realised that fare for commercial vehicles the same length cost so much more. Expensive food just means people bring over much of what they need from the mainland rather than buying locally.
Not just food, Fiona, though I laugh at the comparisons made in papers about "standard weekly shopping basket" cost; ours are often double or even treble! White goods now have to come over from mainland shops - the hydro shop is no more- and delivery charges are horrendous, not to mention many firms won't deliver.
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: Calmac increases
via mobile 16/12/2021 at 5:41pm
