Dramatic drop in Easter passenger numbers shows people are obeying coronavirus lockdown message, CalMac says
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Highland ferry operator Calmac said it carried just 163 passengers across its entire fleet on Easter Sunday.
The figure was a colossal 99.2 per cent down on the 21,570 who journeyed on the same day last year.
CalMac said the numbers were a sign that government "stay at home" pleas appeared to be working.
"There had been concerns that the good weather over the holiday weekend would encourage people to try and access the islands but thankfully the guidance not to travel unless absolutely necessary seems to have been accepted," said CalMac's director of operations, Robert Morrison.
"Reports from ports over the weekend showed that that no vehicles were stopped from boarding. This combined with the extremely low passenger number tells us people are listening to government guidelines to stay at home."
Over the four-day period from Friday to Monday, just 1837 people made a ferry journey on one of CalMac's 28 routes compared to 112,000 for the same period in 2019.
"We are only carrying lifeline supplies and essential workers needed to keep island economies running and communities safe," Mr Morrison added.
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