Calmac cycle carraige

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oldwheels

Legendary Member
Location
Isle of Mull
Groups travelling on Calmac be aware that if there are 6 or more bikes travelling together they should inform the port of departure in advance to be sure of space. Bikes of course travel free of charge but space on a crowded car deck can be a problem.
 
Hope they don't turn away individuals when there is a large group travelling.
 
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oldwheels

oldwheels

Legendary Member
Location
Isle of Mull
I have never heard of anyone being turned away but there is always the chance of a jobsworth. Problem is that there are so many more cyclists travelling on the islands in general and there are claims Mull is suffering a plague of them so they are covering themselves just in case of trouble.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
I have never heard of anyone being turned away but there is always the chance of a jobsworth. Problem is that there are so many more cyclists travelling on the islands in general and there are claims Mull is suffering a plague of them so they are covering themselves just in case of trouble.
A 'plague of cyclists' ... that makes us sound like locusts! :laugh:

I have caught the ferry to and from Mull twice now.

There isn't that much official space for bikes though there are lots of other places that you could squeeze a bike in. I took a bungee cord in case I needed to attach the bike to something if the bike places were taken.

PS This has reminded me that I forgot to go through the photos that I took on my last holiday in Scotland - LINK!
 

Fiona R

Formerly known as Cranky Knee Girl
Location
N Somerset
We had no problems at all travelling as 2 bikes on 15 ferries in a fortnight last July. However I panicked the night before our first ferry to Arran on Day 1, I saw about having to reserve on Ardrossan-Brodick on CalMac website, sure that hadn't been there before. Rang up, reserved, no problems. The ferry guy said it was to avoid disappointment for everyone, groups and individuals as you can get a huge group and not get on as an individual, and things like the Mull Sportive in May, Audaxes, Saturday Club rides out from Glasgow etc causes logistics they need to plan for. Makes sense to me. Last summer we only had to book for Arran, not Mull, and none of the others.
 
I have never heard of anyone being turned away but there is always the chance of a jobsworth.

I've been turned away on the Ardrossan-Brodick ferry a couple of years ago - I was with a group and some got on, but some didn't. We were doing the five ferries, and as we had to wait for the next ferry we never did catch the rest of the group! This was on a sunny Saturday in May, so the ferry was teeming with cyclists.

I didn't know that it was now possible to book in advance (it wasn't then), so that's good to know for the future!
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
If the ferries are attracting lots of cyclists, shouldn't that be seen as an opportunity for CalMac, rather than a problem? :whistle:

Drivers/passengers are charged separately to vehicles so ignore the cost of the passengers - it is the same price that a cyclist pays, £6.90 return.

What about the cost of the vehicle? A return trip to Mull from Oban is £26 for a car. CalMac could come up with some kind of bike storage rack which could be folded down to take the place of a car. I'm fairly sure that you could get 10 bikes in the space needed for one car if the racks were designed sensibly.

In that case if cyclists in a group were each prepared to pay (say) £3 for a return trip for the bike on top of their £6.90 then CalMac could charge £30 for 10 bikes instead of £26 for one car. They could still have (say) 6 free bike places. Any bikes beyond those 6 would have to go in one of the racks and the charge would be £3 return. 3 adults sharing the cost of going by car would pay £15.57 each return. Cyclists paying the bike charge would pay £9.90 return. Ok, it would be a big price hike on £6.90, but it would still be a good deal, and that extra charge could be avoided by reserving one of the free bike places. If the racks could fit more than 10 bikes per car space then the bike charge could be reduced.
 

classic33

Leg End Member
If the ferries are attracting lots of cyclists, shouldn't that be seen as an opportunity for CalMac, rather than a problem? :whistle:

Drivers/passengers are charged separately to vehicles so ignore the cost of the passengers - it is the same price that a cyclist pays, £6.90 return.

What about the cost of the vehicle? A return trip to Mull from Oban is £26 for a car. CalMac could come up with some kind of bike storage rack which could be folded down to take the place of a car. I'm fairly sure that you could get 10 bikes in the space needed for one car if the racks were designed sensibly.

In that case if cyclists in a group were each prepared to pay (say) £3 for a return trip for the bike on top of their £6.90 then CalMac could charge £30 for 10 bikes instead of £26 for one car. They could still have (say) 6 free bike places. Any bikes beyond those 6 would have to go in one of the racks and the charge would be £3 return. 3 adults sharing the cost of going by car would pay £15.57 each return. Cyclists paying the bike charge would pay £9.90 return. Ok, it would be a big price hike on £6.90, but it would still be a good deal, and that extra charge could be avoided by reserving one of the free bike places. If the racks could fit more than 10 bikes per car space then the bike charge could be reduced.
Now that makes sense and can't be allowed!!
 
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oldwheels

oldwheels

Legendary Member
Location
Isle of Mull
We do not want charges for bikes introduced on ferries thank you. I do not think that the phone in system suggested for groups is a booking system as such. More of an advisory thing as the final say is not with the shore based staff but the loading officer on the boat. The main ferries where problems could arise are to the nearer islands like Arran and Mull. I have seen at least a dozen bikes going to Barra for example but these boats tend to be less crowded unless there is an event on. So far as the term " plague " is concerned that is very mild compared to some of the comments I have heard. Trouble is a minority of car haters and urban road warriors cannot adapt to what is regarded on the islands as courtesy and common sense and refuse to stop in passing places. This has been covered ad nauseam in other places but impacts on those cyclists who live on the islands.
 
Groups travelling on Calmac be aware that if there are 6 or more bikes travelling together they should inform the port of departure in advance to be sure of space. Bikes of course travel free of charge but space on a crowded car deck can be a problem.


Travel to the IoW for the Randonnee....... half the ferry deck is taken up by cyclists!!!!!
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
I didn't suggest doing away with the present system of free bike carriage; just adding an option to cater for larger groups of riders. As it stands now, a local cyclist might not be able to get on board if the 'car haters' got there first. The local might have to wait for the next ferry. Worst case, the ferries could be full all day.

I was only suggesting a charge for the extra bikes to help sell the idea to CalMac. They could do it for no charge if they wanted to.

There is absolutely no excuse for bad manners. Not using passing places is not only rude, it is also stupid. The only way that those narrow roads work is for everybody to get on. (It isn't just rude cyclists though. I had a psychotic 4x4 driver aim straight at me on Mull. I was way beyond the previous passing place when the vehicle came round a blind bend towards me. There was room for us to pass each other safely if we proceeded slowly but he wasn't interested in that. "Get off my f*****g road!" was what he screamed at me as he forced me into the barrier. Actually getting off the road would pretty much have involved jumping over the barrier onto rocks or into the sea ...! :whistle:)

And as for problems caused to locals by tourists ... I lived for 21 years in Hebden Bridge, a small tourist trap Yorkshire town with basically one valley road through it. Any sunny weekend or bank holiday, it just gets completely swamped - EXAMPLE!!!!
 
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oldwheels

oldwheels

Legendary Member
Location
Isle of Mull
Hi ColinJ. Your 4x4 was probably an urban visitor tho' not all local drivers are blameless. I used to pass through Hebden Bridge sometimes in the past.I know what you mean. When Balamory was at it's peak here it was unbelievable. Push chairs and buggies as far as the eye could see. To get back to Calmac, this matter has now been passed to Customer Relations. I have found them helpful in the past.
 

smutchin

Cat 6 Racer
Location
The Red Enclave
If the ferries are attracting lots of cyclists, shouldn't that be seen as an opportunity for CalMac, rather than a problem?

Ought to be, but for some reason the people operating the ferries don't see it that way.

The organiser of the New Forest On-Offshore audax is having similar problems with the Wightlink ferry operators that are making it impossible for him to run the event this year - they won't let him book the required number of tickets, even though there has never been a problem with getting that many riders on the same ferry at the same time in previous years.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
Hi ColinJ. Your 4x4 was probably an urban visitor tho' not all local drivers are blameless. I used to pass through Hebden Bridge sometimes in the past.I know what you mean. When Balamory was at it's peak here it was unbelievable. Push chairs and buggies as far as the eye could see. To get back to Calmac, this matter has now been passed to Customer Relations. I have found them helpful in the past.
I got the feeling that he was English! :whistle: Of course, he might actually live on the island, but whoever he was, he was an aggressive idiot. And as for it being 'his' road ... :whistle:

Yes, a bit of a problem for small places which suddenly become popular with the public. Their money is essential to the local economies but the crowds can be a pain.

I organised a ride on Mull last year but it was in September, after the schools had gone back, so we didn't have any problems with the ferries. I did worry at the time about getting to the island and then not being able to get back. I wouldn't fancy hanging about overnight in cycling kit!

It will be interesting to see how CalMac tackles the question of the 'plagues of cyclists'.
 
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