Shetland councillors back plans to build tunnels to link some of largest islands | Scotland
Councilors in Shetland have backed plans to build up to four tunnels to connect some of the largest and most populous islands after years of isolation and decline.
The council voted on Tuesday to explore funding options for the first two undersea tunnels that will connect the Shetland Mainland to the two large northern islands of Yell and Unst.
Islanders on Yell and Unst have been campaigning for years to replace their outdated and unreliable ferries with landlines after witnessing families being separated, businesses closing and their parents being forced to live away from home for work.
The two projects, the first of their kind in Scotland, will cost around £655 million to build and take at least eight years to complete.
Emma Macdonald, leader of the Shetland Islands council, said she would press the Scottish and UK governments for help with construction costs that Shetland cannot afford on its own.
“Islands with fixed connections are repopulating, enjoying economic growth and experiencing a reduction in their average age,” Macdonald said. “We don’t have a ‘do nothing’ option here. Both ferries and tunnels are needed to unlock Shetland’s potential and both the Scottish and UK governments have an interest in helping to make this happen.”
The archipelago’s roll-on-roll-off ferries are on average more than 32 years old. They had difficulty recruiting and retaining staff; 50% of the crew is 46 years or older. Not only do they stop working overnight, they have limited capacity and cannot routinely sail due to bad weather, they also face increasing repair and replacement costs.
For many islanders, this dependence increases feelings of insecurity and isolation and leads to population decline. Relatively short trips can last for hours.
Shetlanders often look with envy at their immediate neighbors in the Danish-speaking Faroes, where tunnels offer uninterrupted connections, including the world’s only undersea interchange, and where Norwegian islands are connected to the mainland by tunnel.
Councilors hope to persuade Scottish and UK ministers to provide some of the core funding through the Scottish National Investment Bank, or sovereign wealth fund, by arguing that the islands are an important part of the UK economy.
The UK’s only spaceport at SaxaVord, at the northern tip of Unst, will host the first rocket launches later this year and Shetland produces 22% of Scotland’s farmed salmon and 88% of its farmed mussels, while trawlers churn out seafood worth £147 million.
Engineering consultants have calculated that the road tunnel between the Mainland and Yell would cost around £352 million to dig, with operating costs of £90 million over the next 60 years.
The tunnel connecting Yell to Unst will cost around £300 million, with operating costs of £72 million. Some of these costs will be covered by tolls, and some can be financed by private investors who can then operate the tunnels.
The council said this would in turn deliver tens of millions of pounds of growth each and increase the social and economic resilience of the islands. Official data shows that the population has fallen by 24% in the last 40 years.
Councilors also agreed on Tuesday that tunnels could then be built to connect two smaller islands to the east of the Mainland – Bressay and Whalsay – and new ferries were proposed for the remote islands of Papa Stour and Skerries.
If Shetland’s tunnels are funded, their construction is expected to revive calls for undersea tunnels or bridges in the Western Isles, which are heavily dependent on ferries.
The Orkney Islands council argues that its geography makes tunnels and bridges less important; Some islands are currently connected to mainland Orkney by fixed links known as Churchill barriers.
Alice Mathewson, spokeswoman for tunnel action groups Yell and Unst, said the tunnels would be financially viable and have lower carbon emissions than ferries. “These connections will not only bridge geographical divides, but will also increase the prosperity and well-being of our island communities,” he said.
The Scottish government has been approached for a response.
