Ferries diverted just hours after Skye harbour reopens

CalMac has diverted its Skye Triangle services just hours after the island's Uig harbour was reopened to ferry traffic following upgrade work.

Normal services between Skye, Uist and Harris were due to resume on Thursday after being suspended for more than two months.

But the reopening of Uig's terminal has not gone to plan, with large vehicles unable to use a temporary bridge.

CalMac was only warned of the restriction late on Wednesday.

It said the situation had caused "enormous disruption and upset".

Highland Council, which owns the harbour, said it was working on a solution. Vehicles longer than 10m (33ft) cannot use the temporary bridge.

CalMac has diverted Thursday's customers to Stornoway in Lewis for sailings to Ullapool in the north west Highlands.

It said an additional service would be provided between Tarbert in Harris and Lochmaddy in North Uist.

The ferry company said from 24-27 March it would revert to a timetable used while Uig harbour was closed, with a daily service provided between Lochmaddy and Ullapool.

It hopes normal services can resume on 28 March.

A spokeswoman said: "We were assured by Highland Council, who are the harbour authority, that there would be no restrictions on operations at Uig - however, this has now been proven to not be the case.

"We are seeking urgent confirmation of the situation from Highland Council as this has caused enormous disruption and upset to our customers.

"We are pressing Highland Council to resolve this matter as quickly as possible so that we can resume our services to Uig."

The harbour was shut in January for repairs and work to adapt the pier to serve new, larger ferries.

It was due to reopen on 13 March, but Highland Council said bad weather had held up the work.

The local authority said a solution was being developed and likely to be in place by Saturday.

A spokeswoman said: "We apologise for any inconvenience caused to HGV operators and other long vehicle users."

A second planned closure is to take place from 30 October to 11 December to allow for the installation of a new linkspan, a structure connecting ferries to the shore.

Earlier this week, Highland Council's economy and infrastructure committee chairman Ken Gowans said the upgrade was essential to ensure the continued provision of ferry services.

He added: "The team has worked extremely hard, despite challenging weather conditions and technical design challenges, to install the permanent and temporary works to allow the reopening of ferry services.

"The council appreciates the patience of the communities who use the route and apologises for the disruption that they have experienced."

The recent closure led to a reduced service, with no direct service to Tarbert and traffic redirected to the Ullapool-Stornoway route, with an amended timetable.

Uig was originally going to be shut for six months, but a backlash from islanders forced transport officials to come up with an alternative plan.

Instead, they proposed an eight-week closure from January, allowing the harbour to reopen for the important tourist season before being shut again for more work later in the year.