Shetland Islands councillors will decide next month whether to pursue tunnels to improve inter-island transport connections.
The councillors will consider the Inter-Island Transport Connectivity Programme’s (IITCP) Outline Business Case and choose a preferred option for each route following reports which established costings for both ferry and tunnel options.
Shetland’s current inter-island ferry network faces accepted operational problems, including significantly increased operating costs (rising to £25m for 2024/25), an ageing fleet with an average vessel age of 32.5 years, difficulties in crew recruitment and retention, and vehicle deck capacity issues on several key routes.
Shetland Islands Council commissioned the IITCP in 2024. The programme is developing a network strategy for eight island communities, exploring a range of options from ‘business as usual’, ferry do something and do max options, and the potential for subsea tunnels for four islands.
In June last year, the council agreed to commission a Fixed Link Model (FLM) study from consultants Stantec and COWI using Yell Sound as a test tunnel.
That study involved input from three globally experienced contractors, consulted the financial community, and concluded that the tunnel is buildable and investable.
Cowi estimates the capital cost of a tunnel for Yell at £352m, excluding contingencies, compared with £438.2m for making the maximum improvements to the ferry service. For Bluemull Sound, the tunnel cost is £303m (ferry max £530.7m); for Whalsay £427.5m (ferry max £606.8m); and for Bressay, £224m (ferry max £157.3m).
Council leader Emma Macdonald said fixed links like causeways, bridges and tunnels, brought repopulation, economic growth and a reduction in average age to islands.
“Doing nothing is not an option in Shetland. We have islands depending on old, unreliable, carbon-heavy ferries, which are depopulating and continually at risk of ferry breakdowns. I look forward to the debate in the Chamber later in June, where we’ll consider all the options before us,” she said.
Cowi’s executive vice-president UK and international, Andy Sloan, said that from an engineering perspective the tunnels were relatively straightforward, but the real challenge was whether the nation took a short-term or long-term view.
“As our global experience tells us, people will be attracted to live in remote and rural places if they are easy to get to, easy to get around, digitally connected and with job opportunities and an affordable standard of living,” he said.
“Fixed links can change how people in Scotland live, work and travel. They can reverse depopulation, provide vital services and support economic growth. Once Scotland builds its first tunnel, it will never stop.”
