Oban Bay Consultation - Need to Teview New Harbour Authority Proposal

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From the RYA:-

The link below is to an important survey by Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) regarding management of Oban Bay. CMAL, one of the partners of the Oban Bay Management Group, are proposing a Harbour Revision Order which would give them control over the whole of Oban Bay and its approaches. This has implications for all users of the Bay.

RYA Scotland feels the questionnaire has limitations and contains leading questions but it is really important that as many individuals as possible fill in the responses to ensure the boating community is represented.

The questionnaire can be accessed by clicking on this link: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/T9RLPPL or by going to the Oban Harbour website and accessing the link from the Oban Bay Management Group page http://www.obanharbour.scot/information/oban-bay-management-group/.

There is a free text box at the end of the survey and we encourage people to use this to express any concerns they may have about the HRO or process to date, not all questions need to be completed to allow the form to be submitted.
Oban Bay is one of Scotland’s most popular destinations for the boating community. It is also one of the busiest commercial harbours. The North Channel entrance is narrow and has for some time been the focus of concerns on safety in the area. RYA Scotland is clear that there is an absolute need for safer management of marine traffic in Oban Bay.

The Oban Bay Management Group is leading discussions on how best to approach these challenges and RYA Scotland volunteers are working hard with the stakeholders group to ensure the voice of the boating community is included alongside that of the community of Oban Bay.

We believe the current level of engagement and the intentions of the Oban Bay Management Group are not adequately transparent and that the interests of the local community and the recreational boating community are being ignored.

RYA Scotland believes a Trust Port model for the Harbour Authority of Oban Bay, recommended in the Fisher Associates report, is the most inclusive option and will best represent the widest range of stakeholder interests but this has been dismissed by the management group without consultation.

RYA Scotland wants to ensure that all interested groups and individuals are involved in the decision about the future management of Oban Bay as any Harbour Revision Order is likely to be in effect for a long time.
 
Fairly pathetic attempt at a survey there, gives the impression 'we already know better than you, but to give a veneer of democracy you can tick some of our boxes'.
 
People are just being asked to make their views known because the RYA believe leisure sailors are being railroaded. The alternative is being railroaded. What’s not to like.

Personaly speaking, Oban is a shit hole run by shits masquerading as councillors. Anything that challenges this closed shop is good,
 
BlowingOldBoots said:
People are just being asked to make their views known because the RYA believe leisure sailors are being railroaded.
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I picked up a leaflet at Ardrishaig telling me that the north entrance to Oban Bay has been designated a narrow channel and that rule 9 now applies. There is nothing to say who has made this designation, against which criteria or with what authority.
 
Well I responded. Who do they use to create these questionnaires? Another triumph of incompetence.

Enforce the prevailing regulations. Remind CalMac masters that they do not ha e a divine right over all other users. Get small boat users to learn to behave properly.

QHM would have eaten some of the tossers I have seen performing in Oban.
 
Doesn't work, most harbours have a dedicated person, the hm, to keep things going smoothly. How many have times have you heard a yacht calling oban hm on the vhf, to get absolutely nowt in response?
The point is, if safety is the concern, then run it like dover etc, they manage fine to control leisure boats and ferries and keep them out of each others way.

Oban is run in a very bizzare manner it seems to me.
 
steve yates said:
Doesn't work, most harbours have a dedicated person, the hm, to keep things going smoothly. How many have times have you heard a yacht calling oban hm on the vhf, to get absolutely nowt in response?
The point is, if safety is the concern, then run it like dover etc, they manage fine to control leisure boats and ferries and keep them out of each others way.

Oban is run in a very bizzare manner it seems to me.
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The Ferries announce their approach or departure on VHF, they use 16 so no excuse for not hearing it, (you can hear the announcements in Tobermory), yachts in the N. Channel get out of their way or hold back until they have passed, seemed to work? Perhaps someone has been naughty and hogged the channel, it should be easy enough for Calmac to identify them? The latest suggestion is for leisure craft to use the edges of the channel, what most of us always did anyway.
 
steve yates said:
Doesn't work, most harbours have a dedicated person, the hm, to keep things going smoothly. How many have times have you heard a yacht calling oban hm on the vhf, to get absolutely nowt in response?
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I've never heard anybody in Scotland call a harbour master on VHF, and it has never occurred to me to do so. What's he going to do - give the master of the Clansman lines?

What beats me is why running as a trust port would need an extra ~£1m per annum. It works perfectly well as it is - what would that extra money bring?
 
The COLREGS appear adequate for Oban Bay traffic, but a penpusher somewhere has spotted an opportunity to build himself an empire.
 
Mallaig, if you want a berth? I usually do unless anchoring of course. Well, to be accurate, I tend to ring the office/mobile no actually, just a courtesy really for ports where fishing still goes on, they usually tell me where best to berth so as not to impede the fishing boats.(I wouldn't bother in places like tobermory of course which is nearly all leisure boats) I have heard loads of boats calling oban on ch 16, every time I have passed anywhere near it, and never answered :)
 
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Just filled out the survey and yes, poorly worded with no decernable logic and I struggle to see what useful info will be gained. Said so in the response too.

Is there a problem with Oban bay? Yes there is no real pull for yotties which is a shame but Calmac broadcast appropriately their movements and if a boater ignores it or is too lazy to check ch12, hell mend them. Not been in for a year or so but never had any issues. Have there been incidents that have lead to this?
 
I suspect that the big change has been the considerable increase in visiting cruise liners most of which anchor N.of Kerrera and the traffic that the continuous stream of tenders running back and forward through the N entance generates. Who would have expected a few years ago that they would often have two anchored outside and another in the bay? The new pontoons have encouraged a lot more small cruise boat visits too. At both Oban and Tobermory the cruise liners are generating a lot more money than the yachts so the focus is changing, though the barely walking clientele do not seem to spend much.
Inverary surely has potential for a cruise liner destination if they can overcome their problems with the private pier.
 
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