Waverley passengers left on the dock after berth cancelled

More than 139 pre-booked passengers were left on Brodick Pier last Thursday after the PS Waverley was unable to berth due to MV Isle of Arran using the pier’s east berth, writes Colin Smeeton.

Passengers waiting on the 2.20pm sailing to Pladda and round Holy Isle say they were only notified of the cancellation with minutes to spare. The east berth at Brodick Pier was occupied by MV Isle of Arran which sought refuge owing to deteriorating weather conditions which resulted in the 3.15pm from Ardrossan and the 4.45pm from Brodick being cancelled.

Paul Semple, general manager of Waverley Excursions Limited, told the Banner: ‘Last Thursday, Waverley’s call at Brodick was unfortunately cancelled. This was due to weather disruption on the Brodick–Adrossan service as a CalMac vessel required the east berth at Brodick Pier for some of the afternoon over the period when Waverley had been scheduled to call for her

weekly cruise to Pladda and round Holy Isle.

‘We notified passengers as soon as it became apparent that Waverley would not be able to use the berth at Brodick. Passengers are able to transfer their ticket to another sailing or apply for a full refund. I offer my sincere apologies to passengers who were due to board Waverley at Brodick and hope they will choose to transfer to another sailing.’

A further sailing round Ailsa Craig, scheduled for Monday August 16, was also altered to exclude Brodick Pier, this time owing to MV Caledonian Isles which was berthed at the east pier after being removed from service following a number of positive Covid results among the crew.

Passengers wanting to sail on the last sea-going paddle steamer in the world can still book for this year’s sailing timetable, which ends on Sunday August 29, by visiting waverleyexcursions.co.uk