Teignmouth & Shaldon Ferry

Recent newspaper articles would suggest that the ferry is not fit for operation.

This is not true. Ferry no4-the ferry that was operational until 31 October is still certificated by the maritime and coastguard agency (MCA) until march of 2010.

Teignbridge District Council(TDC), should they have wished to do so could have approached James Trout and sorted out a deal to keep the ferry running. There may have been a cost to TDC, but this would have been to some extent off-set by income. especially at weekends.

The refit cost of around £30,000 was a quote from a shipwright for major works that would ensure the future of our historic ferry for another decade. Do not forget that the previous operator was happy to pay for the works to be carried out, subject to a renegotiated tender fee.

At the present time TDC have tasked one of their officers to check the ferry on a regular basis and ensure that the batteries are charged so that the automatic pumps can clear the vessel of rainwater. the pumps were left aboard courtesy of ourselves since we care about the ferry.

The latest news is that TDC  have now instructed the Teignmouth Harbour Commission to check the ferries three times a week and run the engines for an hour, each inspection!

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 12th, 2009 at 6:58 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.