Scottish Canals carries out first pricing review since 2017 of moorings on its waterways including the Caledonian Canal to reflect market conditions
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Scottish Canals is conducting its first pricing review of leisure and residential moorings plus transit and navigation licences in five years to reflect changes in market conditions.
When the current prices were introduced in 2017 following a public consultation, Scottish Canals committed to reviewing them regularly to ensure that the cost price of living on, or enjoying, Scotland’s canals by boat reflects market conditions, available facilities, and investment in the infrastructure.
Two independent consultants have been commissioned to carry out the latest review, with the Tourism Resource Company focussing on the leisure industry and Gerald Eve concentrating on the residential market.
Both organisations are specialists in their field and have begun analysing the cost of fees across the country using the methodology that was agreed in 2017.
Richard Millar, chief operating officer of Scottish Canals, said when a new methodology was introduced in 2017 for setting and reviewing the price of leisure and residential moorings as well as transit and navigation licences, a commitment was also given to carry out a review every five years to benchmark fees against the wider market.
"We are embarking upon our first review this year with new prices coming in effect in 2022/23," he said.
"I am pleased that, once again, this will be an independent review led by third party experts who will assess current market conditions using a methodology that was developed in an fair and transparent way to shape how we determine prices going forward."
He added: "As custodians of these valuable heritage assets we want to ensure Scotland’s canals remain vibrant waterspaces with thriving residential communities that welcome hundreds of leisure boaters from across Europe and beyond.
"Offering the right customer experience at the right price point is crucial to their future success."
Scottish Canals is working with Scottish Waterways for All, an umbrella organisation of boaters’ groups across Scotland, to ensure the independent experts have an accurate picture of the facilities available and that project milestones are communicated clearly.
Scottish Canals is also liaising with British Marine, Sail Scotland, Royal Yachting Association Scotland and its 500 mooring customers throughout the review.
The consultants will make their recommendations in March and Scottish Canals will determine how they are implemented with new prices being introduced in spring.
Scottish Canals will write to each mooring customer to explain how they will be affected.
Read more: Navigation resumes on canal network
