Just like the old daysDecember 28, 2011Dear Sir,I had been intending to write to the Minister of Transport in regards to the same bus/ferry transporation woes for Dockyard residents as expressed by “Concerned Parent” on December 24. My son attends Berkeley and we live within the Dockyard gates beyond the bus depot as do many other residents.I was advised that the Berkeley school bus to Hamilton starts collection from Watford. Many bus drivers have been kind enough to pick up Berkeley students en route to the Watford start point, but because the Dockyard bus does not start in Dockyard, I have to transport my son to Watford. No problem, we are used to it now and he often will take the morning ferry instead.The return from school poses other challenges.The regular school bus to Dockyard leaves when school ends. Often the drivers will let the students stay on after Watford until the Dockyard depot, however, even if it is pouring rain, that is where they will end rather than driving into Dockyard and doing the loop back out to the depot. Students who live or are travelling into Dockyard have to walk the rest of the way.No problem we manage.On the days when there are after-school activities and additional classes that run until 5.30pm then it is more challenging. The last winter ferry to Dockyard is at 4.10pm. The school buses are gone so I choose to leave my business in Dockyard early rather than have my son walk into town in the dark alone to catch a late bus or to wait for an hour for the next and last ferry at 6.30pm to Watford as we can be back in Dockyard before it gets in at 7pm.No problem we do what we have to do.However, where we start having problems is our lives as residents outside of the school day. There are no ferries after 6.30pm to the West End and after 6.30pm there are only three #7 Dockyard buses and only one # 8 bus and that is not until 10.45pm. The other buses all end at Watford.After the boat parade I had to leave Dockyard to pick up my son from Watford and I also picked up three other teenagers who were hoofing it home to Boaz Island. That is not the best bridge to be driving over, let alone walking over, in a winter gale. Boaz Island is not too far to walk but it is definitely too far to Dockyard especially at night,on one’s own, in winter. The minibus no longer offers evening service to Dockyard and there are no taxis waiting. Taxi service from Hamilton to Dockyard is the cost of a week’s groceries.I don’t understand why the bus schedule has not been revised to take into consideration the bus depot has moved from Somerset to Dockyard. Why end the buses at Watford? The additional 15 minutes to the depot can surely be accommodated into a revised schedule even if it means reducing the number of departures to allow for the extra half hour that it would take to and from the Dockyard depot.The transport out of Dockyard is just as challenging.That’s a bit disconcerting considering the number of restaurants and bars in the area and the number of residents in the area that I am sure would love to enjoy the festive season without having to worry about driving under the influence. I have had to transport my fair share of stranded tourists back to their hotels.I am not surprised by the number of accidents, including a death, in our area related to alcohol and late night drivers.We can’t support CADA’s ABCD campaign if the AB and C are not readily available after hours for residents. I can appreciate the 3.15pm to 3.45pm free service (and hopefully they would take someone all the way to Dockyard if needed) but there is a huge five-hour window where transport to Dockyard is non-existent.No problem, Dockyard residents are resilient we car pool, we use ankle express, we use the thumb, the kids use their beat-up skateboards and bicycles ... but we get there eventually.Dockyard (from Watford westward) actually has a lot of residents we are more than just a cruise ship destination and a prison. Many families have been residents for several generations yet we don’t even have such services as collection of recyclables (which I am sure our taxes contribute to) ... but that’s another letter.It reminds me of my childhood when we were cut off from the rest of the island when Watford Bridge was being rebuilt and we had to disembark at one end to catch a boat across to the other side to resume our journey.I guess we’ve progressed a bit in the past four decades since?SUNDEE FAULKNERDockyard