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Residents of the three northern islands in Öckerö municipality, Hyppeln, Rörö and Knippla, have joined forces in a call for a weekday with reasonable travel times for work, preschool and activities.
Thomas Alm, president of the island council of Rörö, describes the concern for the development of the islands:
In the last ten years, the number of inhabitants living here throughout the year has decreased by more than ten percent, 150 people on the three islands combined. The islands become depopulated when it becomes difficult to live here as a family with children. We fear that no one will be able to stay here if the service disappears. There is still a school and a shop in Rörö.
And the prerequisite for people to want to stay, and maybe move to the islands, is that it is possible to get to other islands and to Lilla Varholmen to keep traveling to the center of Gothenburg. Without taking too long.
Great need for hassle-free commuting
– Historically, it is the seafarers who have lived here on the islands. But all those professions disappear. People have a growing need to be able to get around, says Thomas Alm and gives examples of how travel can be time consuming:
– People who live in Rörö and work in Öckerö can easily have two hours to work during a weekend, even if it is only two kilometers per bird. The same applies to schoolchildren who may be on their way to some leisure activity in Hönö / Öckerö. It is not reasonable to have to spend four to five hours participating in a 45 minute activity.
Thomas Alm explains that the trip to the nearest emergency hospital, Sahlgrenska, can take more than three hours one way, in case something happens that does not require ambulance transport.
Almost 1000 signatures
Last week, Jan Utbult, chairman of the Öckerö municipal board, was presented with the call for “Survival of three islands” with about 1,000 signatures.
700 of them have left personal comments and described practical difficulties in daily life.
– We want the municipality of Öckerö, Västtrafik, Färjerederiet and Trafikverket, which are customers, to cooperate in a better way. A more efficient and cohesive traffic system is needed, says Thomas Alm.
He claims that the municipality of Öckerö risks losing a lot of tax money if emigration from the islands continues.
Hyppeln’s three island councils, Knippla and Rörö, have estimated that there could be SEK 15 million in lost tax revenue.
“We share the concerns of the island councils”
– We share the concerns of the island councils about the reduction of the population on the islands, says Jan Utbult, president of the municipal council, adding:
– We will contact the Swedish Transport Administration according to the letter and present the opinions expressed.
Jörgen Sandström is COO of Färjerederiet, which is a unit within the Swedish Transport Administration.
– There is a constant dialogue with those who live in the Northern Islands. Travel times are not something you can do anything about. It is the distance that determines the time the ferry takes. Frequency is a matter of cost and necessity, he says.
