Humza Yousaf has said he is “open” to discussing building undersea tunnels between Scottish islands

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

Just seen the National has tweeted this yesterday. Haven't read the news story. It's going down about as well as you'd expect on X/Twitter. I type this on a Scottish island where the ferry service is now so unreliable that people are starting to move away, and island businesses are really feeling the pinch. I'm supposed to be going home tomorrow, not sure if there will be a ferry. Yes, the weather is a big factor, but so are the ancient ferries and unmodernised ports that make it far riskier to operate in marginal conditions. If the SNP can't manage basic infrastructure stuff like this, what's the point even mentioning huge projects like undersea tunnels?

Meanwhile, I see they've banned woodburners from new build properties, even in the remote parts of the Highlands where power cuts are frequent and many houses are off grid.

Theres lots of economic positives to build tunnels to the isles? The sea farming and spaceport for starters!

A9 project is another SNP shambles. How hard is it to build a road?

I’d suggest they start by fixing the M8

Did he, aye? The SNP couldny run a menodge as my granny would have said.

A9 project is another SNP shambles. How hard is it to build a road?

Well evidently utterly impossible if you are Conservative or Labour, since they both had ample opportunity to do something about the A9 prior to 2007 and never once bothered their arses even beginning. On top of that, they both insisted the Edinburgh Trams fiasco be followed through despite the SNP being in favour of shit-canning it and diverting that money into the A9 dualling project.

Tunnels might benefit the Isles, but n
Zero point in having fast links to the mainland if the mainland is a gridlocked shambles, causing all economic gains to be lost.
They need to work from the mainland - Central belt outward. And that includes getting the A9 fixed.

Maybe a practice run before Humza gets his bil a tunnel.🤔

I’m sure that even the SNP could build a road in 17 years - but no, they’ve chosen to focus on other things.

They have built other roads in that time. The M74 extension, M90 Aberdeen bypass, Forth Road Crossing etc. The A9 just hasn't been the first priority.

Without unlimited budget you can't do everything at the same time.

The SNP first committed to dual the A9 in 2011… Now with all the delays it is predicted to be finished in 2035… 10 years later than promised. The Highland communities have been let down. At one point only 11 miles in 2 sections had been dualled in 12 years. At least there is now a delivery programme .

😂 I wouldn't be using the Aberdeen bypass as a glowing example of the SNP getting things done with civil engineering projects!
It was massively delayed, massively over budget and then they had to retrofit several elements along it as there was so many crashes. Even now there is at least 1 lorry or car that ends up in the middle of one of the roundabouts at least once a month as they put a round about in the middle of the damn thing despite being warned in consultation phase it would cause carnage and issues especially in winter.

OMG when are they going to learn, roundabout in major roads cause chaos?
It's not that long ago since the spent millions upgrading Auchinchillins & Raith.

Re the M74 extension. The 4 major contractors (R McAlpine, Balfour Beatty, Carillion & Morgan Sindall) took the M74 Extension by the horns and made it happen, that Contract was placed in 2003? Is that not before SNPs time .
If I remember rightly it was done as a PFI so they had a vested interest in making it work

Edinburgh City by-pass there's another road that's a nightmare and in need of upgrading. Every time I'm on it which isn't very often I play spot the tractor /JCB always, always at least one trundling round it, causing mile long ques of cars and trucks trying to get past them.

The A9's hugely improved compared to what it was before. I'm up and down it a lot and it's much better.

It couldn’t have been much worse, let’s face it - for one of the main road’s north it was awful. It’s better now but nowhere near where it should be.

😂😂 @Needanewname42 Your post highlights the different lenses we’re both using perfectly!

I’m talking about building tunnels from the islands of Unst, yell, Whalsay etc to the Shetland mainland to be able to connect with the overnight ferry in Lerwick so we can connect with Aberdeen on the Scottish mainland. That would have fantastic economic benefits. Not connecting the Shetland islands with a 180mile tunnel to Aberdeen. I have no idea how long a tunnel to the central belt would be 🤷‍♀️

@MrsAmaretto 😄 🤣 Youd need to pay me to go into a tunnel that long. However, shortish tunnels or causeways between the Isles would certainly make sense.

Yousless is bumping gums about long tunnels from Western Isles and Mull to the main land, seriously its is a pie in the sky piece of nonsense.

The channel tunnel is about 22 miles. Thinking of the populations involved, it links 65 million to however many millions in Europe. And was a massive civil engineering project, if memory serves me right both UK and French governments put money into it. And has never replaced the ferries. It was £9 billon in 1994.

I think it is about 34 miles from the Uist to Skye? Linking about 65 folk to 5 million. I don't need to spend money doing a viabity study to know a the billions required could be better spent elsewhere.

Using Bank of England inflation calculator £9 billion would be £18.18 B and a third longer circa £24 Billion, aye Scotland can afford that. 🤔

Yes, he is a twatt. Us Shetlanders are paying Faroese and Norwegian consultants to advise and estimate costs for our tunnels based on the tried and tested model of folk paying for it each time they use it to pay the debt off. It works for our Scandinavian neighbours. Far too logical and sensible for the Scottish government so we’re paying the consultants out of money we’ve fundraised.

Cos maintaining the infrastructure for a journey from Cardiff to Bala is definitely similar to that needed for a journey from Glasgow to Stornoway.

Which is why densely populated areas are paying for the rural people. Same as in Scotland.

How much do those Welsh urban areas contribute to the ferries to Skomer? What is their view on paying to build a tunnel there instead?

The QE2 took 3.5 years, from laying down the keel, to being completed and launched. The first steel for the ferries was cut in 2015, and neither ferry is ready yet.

I wouldn’t trust HY and the raging ineptocracy that is the SNP government to build IKEA furniture, never mind a tunnel.

No idea, but they're subsidising for an airport, train and bus service already.

No offence but it's really not a similar comparison at all if you have knowledge of the Scottish economy and local industries

A lot of the rural areas of Wales between Bala and Cardiff are used for farming and generally the upland areas are less profitable per acre due to difficulties. Average wages are typically low.

The Shetland Isles in comparison are reasonably wealthy with fishing, mussel farms, export of Shetland wool/knit wear along with the oil industry. They also heat their own public buildings in Lerwick.
The agricultural land on the mainland also being a large area of whiskey country alongside other industries (and oil and gas).

People in Glasgow don't subsidise those in Shetland more likely the other way around!
I've lived in Wales as well as North East Scotland

So does Shetland want a tunnel, has anyone asked them?

Shetland Islands has several tunnel action groups and the part of one of the councils proposals in stages of review. It's to connect smaller islands with mainland Shetland based on the Faroe Islands system.

It's not to connect Shetland with mainland Scotland and not what Humza was proposing to examine - he was on about West Coast Isles.