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SIC Ferries
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Shetland Islands Council Ferries (often named SIC Ferries) is a company operating inter-island ferry services in Shetland, a subarctic archipelago off the northeast coast of Scotland.[1] The company operates 8 services across 9 of the Shetland islands using 12 vessels, one of which is operated by BK Marine.[2]
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Services
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Services of the SIC Ferries are:[3]
- Bluemull service linking the North Isles at Gutcher, Yell; Belmont, Unst; and Hamars Ness, Fetlar. This is done in a triangular service, where one ferry mostly operates between Belmont and Gutcher, with a few trips to Fetlar, and other is based in Fetlar and makes a few daytime trips between Gutcher and Belmont. The Fetlar terminal was changed from Oddsta to Hamars Ness at the end of 2004 after damage to the pier.
- Bressay service to Maryfield on the Isle of Bressay from Lerwick on the Mainland.
- Fair Isle service to Fair Isle from Grutness or Lerwick on the Mainland.
- Foula service to the Isle of Foula from Walls on the Mainland. This service is operated by BK Marine, a Shetland-based workboat hire company.[4][5]
- Out Skerries service to the Isle of Out Skerries from Symbister (on Whalsay), Vidlin or Lerwick or sometimes Laxo, depending on the timetable and weather conditions, all on the Mainland.
- Papa Stour service to the Isle of Papa Stour from West Burrafirth on the Mainland.
- Whalsay service to Symbister on the Isle of Whalsay from Laxo, or Vidlin depending on weather conditions, on the Mainland.
- Yell service to Ulsta on the southern point of the North Isle of Yell from Toft on the Mainland.
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History
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Before RoRo ferries were brought to Shetland, people and cargo were transported to the islands in two different ways, by steamer from Lerwick and the overland route with flit boats across each of the sounds. Shetlanders also used their private fishing boats and private charter boats to get around the islands.[6]
Steamer Service
The Shetland Steam Navigation Company was formed in 1868 to provide a service from Lerwick to Unst. The SS Chieftain's Bride was bought from the west coast for £2,100. This vessel proved to be too slow, nicknamed "the Crab", for the service[7], therefore a purpose built SS Earl of Zetland (I) was brought into service in 1877. She continued until 1946 with the new MV Earl of Zetland (II) coming into service in 1939. The new Earl provided 3 sailings per week to Whalsay, Yell and Unst, and once a week to Fetlar and Skerries. By the 1970's, she did 3 trips to Fetlar stopping at Brough with one stop every fortnight at Houbie.
Flit Boats Service
The flit boats across the sounds were mostly operated by locals and served Bressay; Ulsta, Yell from Mossbank until 1951, then Toft; Unst from Gutcher. The Bressay service was taken over by the Lerwick Harbour Trust in 1973 from local Bressay men. A list of known flit boats are below with mostly rough dates of service:[8]
Norwegian Ferry Trials
In 1965, with the growing traffic to the isles, Shetland Islands Council trialed a Norwegian ferry, MV Rovdehorn, to see how practical it would be to introduce roll on/ roll off ferries would be in Shetland. The Norwegian Government gifted the charter of the ferry for the duration of the trials. Due to the weather conditions across the North Sea, Norwegian submarine depot ship HNoMS Horten escorted MV Rovdehorn to Lerwick. Trials commenced on 23 August 1965[9], with stops at Symbister and Mid Yell and a makeshift wooden linkspan being built in Lerwick to test the loading of the vessel. A video of the news at the time can be viewed at the National Library of Scotland website. After this a large pier and linkspan building program begun alongside the building of 5 new ferries, most of which built in the Faroe Islands.[6]
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Current Fleet
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The SIC Ferries fleet of 12 ferries consists of:[4][10]
![Thumb](#/media/File:Bressay_ferry_"Bigga"_at_the_Lerwick_Pier_-_geograph.org.uk_-_893352.jpg)
Proposed Future Fleet
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New Vessel
On 13 February 2025, the council revealed that they are looking into building a new vessel, which would possibly replace or operate alongside the current relief vessel, MV Fivla. This came after the Scottish Government gave the council £10 million funding for island connectivity, which will be used for this project.[14] They put a due date for end of 2028, at which point the oldest vessel in the fleet will be 46 years old. Maritime unions and locals have expressed concerns over this fact due to ferries normally only having a lifespan of 25 years and half the fleet having a grandfather clause allowing them to have passenger accommodation below the waterline, making it inaccessible to many people.[15][16] The council later came with a second option to make a vessel similar to MV Linga, which would operate alongside her at Whalsay, with MV Hendra then becoming a second spare vessel.[17][18]
Fair Isle
In January 2023, £26.7 million was awarded by the UK Government, as part of the 'levelling up' fund, to the Shetland Islands Council for the purchase of a new ro-ro ferry for Fair Isle and new terminals at both the Grutness and Fair Isle ports, including linkspans. The new ferry is expected to be similar to the MV Snolda, with 25m length and capacity for about 4 cars and a crane. The work is due to be completed by April 2026.[19] Works began at Grutness pier to facilitate this new vessel on 30 April 2025, with all Fair Isle sailings going to Lerwick until they are completed.[20]
The contract was awarded to Parkol Marine Engineering, Whitby, Yorkshire on 10 June 2025, with an expected delivery date of October 2026. The vessel will be a faster and bigger monohull that will have additional lift on capability and ability to operate to the current linkspans.[21] The design, which was done by Chartwell Marine, was presented on the news in September 2025, for delivery end of 2026.[22]
Papa Stour (cancelled)
There is also a project involving Coastal Workboats and BK Marine to trial a fully electric ro-ro ferry between West Burrafirth and Papa Stour. The cost of project will be roughly £9 million, with £6 million of which funded by the UK Government's Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition. This trial is due to last 4 weeks from March 2025, in hope of it taking full time service, where it would take over from the regular vessel, MV Snolda, for the trial period.[23] In April 2025, it was announced that the project will no longer take place on the Papa Stour route.[24] The island community previously presented their concerns for the project going ahead with little to no consultation.[25]
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Previous Fleet
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The following vessels used to be part of the SIC ferries fleet, information left blank is unknown:[11][6][26]
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References
External links
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