Ferry cutbacks leave guest house owners, visitors and residents stunned
Hoteliers and visitors at Salt Kettle in Paget say they’ve been hit hard by cutbacks to the ferry service.Greenbank Guest Houses owner Cindy Ashton said she stands to lose 20 percent of her clientele because of reductions to the Pink Route which includes the loss of all weekend service on top of other cuts. For now, Ms Ashton drives stranded guests to Hamilton in her car.“I have a lot of older guests who have been coming here for 20 years or more,” Ms Ashton said. “Many of these guests come here because of the ferry service. It was just 14 steps for them to get on board and go to Hamilton.“They don’t want to have to walk up to Middle Road and wait for a bus. Just the other day I had a couple tell me they loved their stay here but they won’t be able to come back next time, because the ferry service was part of why they came.“I’m getting e-mails left, right and centre from people who have read about it in The Royal Gazette online, asking me why the ferry been cut. I honestly just don’t know what Government was thinking with this.”Ms Ashton added that Greenbank has been run by her family for more than 55 years.“The ferry was Salt Kettle’s big selling point, and that goes for residents as well.”Aside from the lost services, she said: “We used to be able to get the ferry to Dockyard. Now the ferry from Salt Kettle into Hamilton misses the Dockyard ferry by ten minutes. It seems like no thought has been put into this, so I really do hope Government can find some way to accommodate us.”When full, Greenbank’s cottages and guesthouse can take about 26 guests.“It’s early to say, but I think I could lose 20 percent of my business,” Ms Ashton said.Hazel Lowe, who has run the Salt Kettle guest house since 1970, said the cutbacks to the Pink Route have already lost her business.“It’s been an awful blow to us,” she said.“I hate to have to tell guests about it when they arrive. The loss of the Saturday and Sunday ferry service is particularly bad. I have had a couple of guests tell me already that they won’t be coming back next year.“It’s infuriating the way this has been sprung on us. I have been very lucky with my business and I get repeat guests, but whether they will continue coming back after this, I don’t know.”Salt Kettle guests Richard and Elizabeth Hoigt, of New York, told The Royal Gazette: “The Government’s decision to cut back and even eliminate ferry service at the beginning of the Island’s high season of visitor arrivals is stunning, is unbelievable and will eventually cost more in lost revenue than the modest savings envisioned by this short-sighted Government.”The couple have visited the Island twice a year for 20 years, Mr Hoigt said, and enjoy staying at both Greenbank and Salt Kettle guest houses.“Whether we can continue to visit guest houses in Paget is now an open question,” Mr Hoigt said.Also hit by the cutbacks are residents of Hinson Island.Anthony Coleman, who has lived on the island for 50 years, said he was finding the cutbacks “absolutely horrendous”.“There’s nothing from 10am to 3pm,” he said. “And when I went out to the Hamilton Princess, I had to leave at 7.45pm to get the 8pm ferry.”Saying he’s been left stranded without the weekend ferries, Mr Coleman has been forced to put his own boat back in the water.“I’ve been in touch with Marine and Ports. They have promised to do something for us. I hope that’s not just a means of keeping us quiet.”l How are you affected by the cuts in the ferry service? E-mail news[AT]royalgazette.bmUseful web link: www.marops.bm
Transport Minister Terry Lister said “the ball's in the court of entrepreneurs” when it comes to filling the gaps of ferry cuts.
Mr Lister said he understood why ferry passengers were upset about the reduced service, but insisted Government had to save money.
It is now up to the private sector to bolster the reduced service with Mr Lister saying: “Talks are going well, we are making progress.”
The Department of Marine and Ports significantly cut back on the ferry timetable after its budget was slashed from $9.9 million in 2010-2011 to $7.6 million this financial year.
The cutbacks mean the last Dockyard ferry leaves Hamilton at 8.30pm instead of 10pm every day like last year. The pink route, which serves Hamilton, Paget and Warwick, has been cut from 24 weekday services per day on the old schedule to just 13 per day on the new. This route's weekend and holiday service has been axed completely.
The orange route serving Hamilton, Dockyard and St George's will only run four instead of eight times per day, and the green route between Hamilton and Rockaway now runs eight times per day, down from 13.
Mr Lister said he hoped new privately-run ferry services would be seen as new business opportunities.
He said: “The ferry cuts were a way we were able to reduce costs.
“It is now up to the entrepreneurs to come along and make these routes profitable when we can't.
“They will be providing a service that people will be very welcome of.
“The ball's in their court. We'd be happy to listen to their ideas and encourage them to come in and apply for a permit.”
Mr Lister said they were confident a private-partnership would soon be providing weekend and bank holiday service on the pink ferry route. He said this private service should have been up and running by the start of the month but had been delayed. When asked when it would start, he said: “I would like it to be today,” before adding: “We hope to make the announcement shortly.”
Mr Lister added that transport bosses had also been in “extensive talks” about a late-night ferry service between Hamilton and Dockyard, but he added nothing had been finalised. It has recently been reported in the Bermuda Sun that Dennis Owen was looking for financial backing to use his 70ft catamaran Ubervida to transport passengers on this route after the ferries stop running.
Mr Lister said: “People are still really upset about the cuts, they really are. I can completely understand why.
“It's the hardest thing to take something away from people. Change is a tremendous inconvenience.”
