COUNCILS in Orkney and Shetland will be be given a cash boost to explore the creation of inter-island tunnels, Shona Robison announced in the Budget.
The £20 million boost is to improve inter-island connections "whether that means flights, ferries or tunnels", the Finance Secretary said.
Both areas are represented by Liberal Democrat MSPs.
Robison told MSPs: “This one-off investment will enable them to sustain and improve inter-island connections, whether that means flights, ferries or – and I know members for the Northern Islands will be pleased to hear this – tunnels between islands.
“It’ll be for those communities to decide.”
Last November, a delegation of Scottish MPs travelled to the Faroe Islands to get a glimpse of the newest tunnel there - a 10.2 kilometre route linking the main island of Streymoy with Sandoy to the south, which cost roughly just £9.8 million per km.
Elsewhere, a team of consultants appointed by Shetland Islands Council explored how transport links between the islands could be improved over the next 30 years in October.
They said any future tunnels are likely to focus on linking Lerwick, Bressay, Whalsay and the main island and linking the main island to Yell and Yell to Unst.
Building tunnels to link two islands to the Shetland mainland could help communities and the economy develop and support the move towards carbon neutrality, according to a recent report.
The report found that in the Faroes, where around 11% of the entire road network is now underground, there appears to have had a positive impact on communities and the economy.
Scots will also see the extension of free bus travel to asylum seekers and provide inter-island free ferry travel to children and young people under 22.
The Government pledged to to invest more than £2.6 billion in public transport to provide new ferries, enhance ports and harbours, and commence plans to replace ScotRail’s Intercity fleets.
