FERRY timetables linking Kilcreggan, Gourock and Dunoon could be changed to better align with ScotRail’s new timetable, an operator has said.

It has been confirmed that a number of ‘fast’ train services between Glasgow Central and Gourock are to be scrapped when ScotRail’s new timetable begins on Sunday, May 21.

That has led to longer waits for commuters between ferry and train journeys on trips to and from Gourock – with one councillor claiming that Scotrail had not replied to his concerns.

Councillor William Sinclair’s (Cowal, Liberal Democrat) comments were followed by a Calmac official saying that ferry timetables could be altered in view of the train timetable changes.

The discussion took place at a meeting of the Cowal Transport Forum, consisting of four Argyll and Bute Councillors and transport officials, on Tuesday, May 16.

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Councillor Sinclair said: “I have contacted Ms Minto’s office, where I was able to see a letter from Scotrail to her. It was not a particularly great letter and did not state a lot of information.

“I also have written to Scotrail and have had absolutely no reply. For the timetable, there was absolutely no consultation with residents here, or councillors.

“They talk about having discussions with partners, but I do not see any of that.”

Iain Slorach, Calmac’s contract and planning manager, had met with Councillor Sinclair the previous day and told the meeting: “We are committed to looking at what we can do to our current timetable to get it to better align with the Scotrail timetable.

“We are looking into that and it may mean sailings throughout the timetable need to change time. We may also have to amend the Gourock to Kilcreggan timetable, but that is being worked on.

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“We will come back to Councillor Sinclair and involve the community councils on those routes to come up with the best way forward.”

Councillor Sinclair added: “With the removal of the peak time tariff, I certainly do believe that will increase traffic. Getting to Glasgow in the morning and coming back at 5pm is going to be far cheaper and I imagine that will make a difference to people travelling.”

Scott Prentice, ScotRail head of business development, said: “ScotRail has regular engagement with Caledonian MacBrayne so that we can provide convenient connections between our services where possible.

“We apologise to those customers who will be inconvenienced by the changes we’re making to our timetable in Inverclyde in May, as we recognise that there will be an increase in journey time for customers travelling from Dunoon during off-peak periods.

“These changes are an interim measure while we continue to recover from the impact the pandemic had on our driver training programme. We’ll share our future plans for Inverclyde with customers and stakeholders in the coming months, and we look forward to hearing their views on those proposals.”