Department of Marine and Ports announced this week.

Despite planned cutbacks to the Somerset service, the Department said it hoped the growth in passenger business continued.

Somerset showed the biggest increase with a jump of 28 percent with 12,134 people using the route compared to 9,471 in 1992.

The total January jump was pegged at 23 percent, 5,000 more than the total reached during the same month in 1992. The total for the month was 26,426.

On the Paget/Warwick run, numbers were 14,292 compared to 11,997 last year -- a 19 percent increase.