11 Reviews Published 65 minutes ago As expensive as Channel ferries for half the distance Caledonian MacBrayne ferries, known as Calmac as you might know, are owned by the Scottish Government, who then set the fares. The Scottish Government, in order to make themselves look good in the eyes of the electorate ,discount the fares,which they have set at an exorbitant rate , in the first place, to a level. which is just a mere expensive, If the government had set the fares at a reasonable price in the 1st place, there would be no need for all this financial shuffling to and fro. and then to top it all they generously discount my disabled fare by a miserable , paltry, 25%, I am a disabled war veteran? Diesel fuel has dropped from $90 a barrel , in Jan 2011, to $30 a barrel now, a drop of 66% , how much have the ferry fares dropped in line with this, absolutely ZERO, and what has happened to that income. If Calmac were run along Ryanair lines, we would have brand new , hired , ferries, rock bottom prices and running day and night , instead we have a chosen few fat cats, manipulating the fares and running rosters to the Governments benefit. what has happened to the excess income? Has it been stashed away to pay for the next abysmal referendum. The Scottish Government, has just awarded Calmac, who they own, an,8 yes 8 year contract, against Serco, who were also bidding. Cronyism,favouritism and nepotism are alive and well in Scotland. I have called for a public enquiry, but I am a lone sassenach voice calling in the wilderness.