BBCI toll fallout

Even as the Administration has introduced a river taxi service at the Berbice River, causing much conflict between the boat and minibus operators, the Government has now sought to have a truce between the parties. Minister within the Public Infrastructure Ministry Annette Ferguson has indicated that a meeting with the Route 56 Minibus Association saw a proposal being submitted for review and consideration. “They (the Association) suggested that Government should seek to have a schedule of the river taxis made available, so they can go back to working between the hours of 09:00h to 14:30h, then commence working from 17:00h… that’s the kind of arrangement they had while the pontoon was being operated,” Minister Ferguson explained to the Government Information Agency (GINA). She added that when the pontoon was providing ferrying services, minibus operators worked around its schedule. This kind of arrangement, once implemented, will see both types of services being able to have a fair share of what commuters spend daily on transportation. The Association pointed out that for years, minibus operators plying the Georgetown-Patentia or Parika routes, have coexisted with the operations of the Stabroek to Vreed-en-Hoop ferry services. The move to reintroduce water taxis to cross the Berbice River was made after Government was unsuccessful in getting the Berbice Bridge Company Inc (BBCI) to reduce the toll to cross the Berbice River Bridge by $300. The reintroduction of  the boat service across the Berbice River had  also seen hire car operators on the New Amsterdam side of the river re-establishing a service from the New Amsterdam Ferry Stelling, which is considered a lucrative route to operate. Hire car operators around New Amsterdam charge $100 per drop, but those operating from the Stelling charge $140. However, this sparked a protest from minibus operators who ply the New Amsterdam to Rosignol route who claimed to be losing significant revenue as a result of the stiff competition against the heavily subsidised Government-operated ferry system, which sees pensioners, schoolchildren, nurses and teachers travelling free of charge.