Public transport in Bermuda gets rave reviews from visitors, but local users and providers are critical of the services. “The ferry is excellent,” said Sheila Wilsker from Florida, who was visiting the Island aboard the Grand Princess, which was calling at Dockyard this week. “It’s on time, it’s quick, it’s clean and the crew are polite.” However, one regular bus passenger said about the running of that service: “Lateness is an issue.”Taxis, however, have experienced a year-on-year downturn in business and drivers who spoke to The Royal Gazette feel that to fix the problem, the issue reaches beyond the transport and into tourism, with one driver saying Bermuda needs to be promoted differently. “The Government needs to talk to the old-timers — that’s what they need to do,” while another stated: “I think we should give visitors a Bermudian vacation,” which he felt they do not get now.Drivers emphasised that they were business owners. “We invest a lot in our cars and in gaining knowledge to give passengers that experience. I don’t think we’re respected whereby we can increase our investment,” he said. “There is a big difference between this year and last,” said another driver. “If you’re a seasoned driver you can sense it — business is about 20 percent down. It’s because of the economy — plus, tourism is not promoted correctly.”One experienced taxi owner said he picks up business from the international business sector. ”That is helping to keep me going, crediting his 43-year-long career and the resulting contacts and reputation that he has developed during his years at the taxi wheel.The mandatory Global Positioning System remains a hot topic for taxi drivers and owners, with the industry divided. “I do find it useful — at times,” said one. Another long-term driver agrees with the GPS requirement. “I think everyone should have it. If you don’t have a computer in your house then you’re already behind — you have to keep up with technology, whatever some taxi drivers say. A lot of people don’t like change, but I can sit in my yard with my coffee and wait for it to beep,” adding that if he did not have a GPS he would be driving up and down the streets looking for fares. “It saves time; it saves money,” he said.But another driver, who says he is against GPS, questioned why taxis were required to have GPS systems in their cars when emergency vehicles, such as police cars and fire trucks, did not. “The whole thing is backward,” he said.Another issue for the drivers are mini buses, some of which are owned by hotel properties and used to move their guests around, that now make up a part of the transport scene. While taxi drivers have to follow a list of regulations, even governing what clothes they must wear while on the job, mini buses are largely unregulated as well as eating into the taxi industry’s business. “Mini buses are a big issue — it’s tearing us apart,” he said.In the case of the regular bus service, passengers who use it regularly gave it a passing grade, but pointed to some irregularity — an issue which hit the headlines in September when primary schoolchildren were left stranded at Elliott Primary School after buses did not show up to collect them. One regular passenger said: “Lateness is an issue,” while another said: “Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s not so good.” The problem, she said: “... is scheduling, for the most part.”One regular passenger who said she was “always on the bus” said: “I know the bus service well and it’s okay.” She had words of praise for the drivers, however: “They make sure that the kids wait until the older people get on the bus, and they also make sure that those people have seats.”A resident who moved to Bermuda from Barbados drew attention to electronic information boards that were not working at the Hamilton bus station. He also called for more schedule information in the bus shelters. Improved information about ferry service changes were cited by one regular user who commutes to Dockyard. “No one ever seems to know what’s going on,” she said.Visitors to the Island who used the ferry service praised it enthusiastically. Another visitor, Patricia Kleinglass, who was visiting with her husband from Glasgow. “Because my husband has mobility issues, the bus and ferry systems allows us to see everything without taking taxis. I think it’s great,” she said.In fact, ferries are the transport option of choice for cruise ship visitors who spoke to The Royal Gazette yesterday. “We just take the ferry and that is fine,” said a German visitor.