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ARCALIA SHIPPING /
CLASSIC INTERNATIONAL CRUISES / TRAVELSCOPE
ATHENA - its is reported that Travelscope has
cancelled the 2007 / 08 charter for the veteran 1948 trans - Atlantic liner and
all ATHENA cruises from the UK have been cancelled.
The ATHENA is, of course, better known
as the STOCKHOLM, famous for its encounter with the Italian Liner ANDREA
DORIA. Despite the major collision which resulted in the sinking of the
Italian Liner the ATHENA has had a charmed life when many ships a
fraction of her age have long gone to the scrap yard.
She was sold by Swedish America Line
in 1960 to the East German Government for use as a trade union cruise
ship VOLKERFREUNDSCHAFT and operated until 1985. ATHENA then had a
somewhat chequered career which included use as an asylum seeker's
refuge in Oslo. Following several ownership changes she was extensively
refitted and chartered to Classic International Cruises on for ten years
in 2004.
During 2006 she had operated a number of
cruises to / from Falmouth and Liverpool and had been scheduled to
undertake two cruises from Falmouth this spring before switching to the
east coast for the main summer season.
As a consequence of the cancellation of the
ATHENA cruises, the VAN GOGH and PRINCESS DANAE, also chartered by
Travelscope has been rescheduled - with a number of planned Irish /
Celtic Sea calls cancelled.
The Falmouth Packet, a Cornish News Paper
suggests that the cancellation has been due to a slump in bookings
following the negative publicity in the wake of a lively return
trans-Atlantic crossing last autumn in which one passenger received
fatal head injuries.
In a statement Travelscope, who
charter the ship, said the cruise in March had been cancelled because of
low ticket sales.
"We can confirm that the ATHENA has been taken
out of the Travelscope programme for the cruise departing March 8th 2007
due to disappointing sales," it said. "The exact movement/positioning of
the ship will be handed by the owners although we do understand that
they have scheduled a departure from Lisbon during this time which will
be sold in the Portuguese market."
"This decision involves some amendments to the
programme for 2007. A small number of cruises, those with low numbers
booked, will be cancelled. The vast majority of cruisers will be
accommodated on VAN GOGH and PRINCESS DANAE with minimal date changes
and on the same itineraries as originally booked."
Edwin Wilmshurst, who supplies most of the
cruise call items for Irish Sea Shipping writes that around 90% of
booked passengers have had their cruise dates and/ or area of visit
changed.
However, there has been some suggestion on the
Yahoo Liners List the ATHENA cancellation may have been in influenced by
other matters - there is an ongoing thread concerning ATHENA on Liners
List Yahoo Group.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LinersList/
Cruise call lists featured on Irish Sea
Shipping have been updated to take into account the end of the ATHENA
charter and rescheduling of the VAN GOGH and PRINCESS DANAE. [CLICK
HERE]
BUGALED BREIZH
A
French prosecutor investigating the BUGALED BREIZH tragedy, in which five
fishermen died three years ago, has cleared both a British and a Dutch
submarine of involvement in the accident.
Anna Kayanakis said documents sent by
the Royal Navy to a court in
Quimper, Brittany, along with the testimony of the captain of HMS
TURBULENT proved the submarine was moored at Devonport, Plymouth, when
the BUGALED BREIZH sank off the Lizard.
Documents released by the Dutch Navy, including the log book of the
submarine DOLFJIN, show it was ten nautical miles from the place where
the Breton trawler sank at 12.23pm French time on January 15 2004.
Mrs Kayanakis revealed that interviews with Navy personnel had answered
some questions surrounding the tragedy.
A helicopter which arrived at the scene was a Sea King MK7 which had
picked up the trawler's distress call while taking part in exercises.
And a red liferaft found floating in the area was slashed by a diver,
said Mrs Kayanakis, to sink it to avoid confusing rescue operations.
Asked whether a judge investigating a case of manslaughter and failing
to assist persons in danger, had now ruled out the theory that a
submarine snagged the Bugaled's trawl gear and dragged her down, she
replied: "I cannot definitely say that, but two submarines suspected of
involvement, the TURBULENT and the DOLFIJN, have been ruled out."
[WESTERN MORNING NEWS]
CAMMELL LAIRD
HROSSEY departed from #5 dry dock on the morning of Sunday March 18
bound for Lerwick. During her three weeks on Merseyside she was refitted
and equipped with new crew accommodation at the stern. This has enabled
her old crew area to be converted to passenger accomodation.
Apparently due to conditions the Mersey Pilot was dropped at Douglas
before the ship went to shelter on the east coast of the Isle of Man
from the gales.
As
there is now a dock free the next occupant of #5 may be SEA EXPRESS I to
facilitate hull repairs.
CELTIC LINK
CELTIC MIST - A Co Wexford-based vessel has been taken out of operation
in Southampton after being declared unsafe by British authorities.
CELTIC MIST, chartered by Wexford based Ro-Ro operator Celtic Link, was
inspected by the Classification Society in Southampton after it was
reported to the British Maritime Coastguard Authority by the
International Transport Federation (ITF).
The
vessel can no longer operate in Irish or British waters until major
repairs are carried out. According to the ITF, the vessel was chartered
from Jay Management of Greece for Celtic Link's daily freight service
between Portsmouth and Cherbourg.
The
ITF said it had reported the state of the vessel after crew members and
contractors working on board contacted them about conditions on it.
ITF
Inspector Tommy Molloy said: "The engine room is a nightmare. There is
heavy fuel oil sludge almost a foot deep in the bilges. The continuous
vibrations mean huge bolts undo themselves as others are being
tightened.
"The boiler room is so dangerous that the engineers have now refused to
work in it. They say they risk C02 poisoning. One man has already been
declared unfit for work as a direct result of C02 poisoning received in
the boiler room.
"He
was taken to hospital in Portsmouth and was told he could not work for
at least two weeks. Two days ago he was told he was being paid off and
was taken in a taxi to the airport from where, he claims, he had to pay
for his own ticket back to Lithuania," Mr Molloy said.
"Crew accommodation is probably the worst I have seen. I don't think any
prison cell in the UK would offer worse accommodation than afforded to
this crew. They have had enough. They want the wages they were promised
and they want to go home."
The
vessel has been moved from Portsmouth to Southampton for extensive
repair work. [IRELAND.COM]
CELTIC SUN - will leave the Dublin to Liverpool service this weekend.
She is believed to have been chartered to
Acciona.
IRISH FERRIES
ULYSSES - the afternoon Holyhead to Dublin sailing on Monday March 12
was delayed due to a death on board. The ship eventually departed at
17:24.
Press reports indicate that an investigation has subsequently been
launched as the man had been in police custody shortly before his death.
An Irish Ferries spokesman said the man
collapsed while the ship was docked. Crew members tried to revive the
elderly man who had boarded the ship.
North Wales Police confirmed he had been in
their custody, and the force has routinely referred the matter to the
Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).
An IPCC spokesman said: "I can confirm that the
IPCC has had a referral from North Wales police after a man was found
dead shortly after he had been in police custody.
"The IPCC will now look at that referral before
deciding what to do next."
The Irish Ferries spokesperson added: "An
elderly gentleman collapsed on board the 1410 sailing on Monday.
"The crew administered CPR and an ambulance was
called because the ship was still in dock. The man was taken to
hospital.
"There was some police involvement, but we have
no details on that." A North Wales Police spokeswoman confirmed a man
had died at Holyhead and that the case had been referred to the IPCC.
[BBC]
MANAGEMENT BUYOUT
On Friday the High
Court has paved the way to start the first steps towards the
multi-million euro management buyout of Irish Continental Group.
Ms Justice Mary Laffoy in yesterday issued
orders directing the summoning of a meeting of the shareholders in
Dublin next month to approve the scheme of arrangement for the buyout.
Earlier this month the Irish Continental Group
(ICG) agreed to back a €471m management buyout offer led by chief
executive Eamonn Rothwell.
The buyout offer is for the acquisition for cash
of the ICG ferry group by Aella PLC, a newly formed company owned by the
senior management. Management may offer shareholders in ICG €18.50 per
unit, made up of one ordinary share and three redeemable preference
shares.
In the High Court Ms Justice Mary Laffoy
granted an order for a meeting of the scheme shareholders to take place
in the Berkeley Court Hotel at 3.15pm on April 12 next.
She further granted an application by Counsel
for ICG that a meeting of Aella Class shareholders take place 15 minutes
later on the same date and at the same venue.
On how to conduct the meetings Ms Justice
Laffoy granted a number of directions including if the question of
whether to approve the scheme of arrangement is put to the meetings a
poll shall be taken.
The matter will be mentioned in court again on
April 16. The €471m valuation of the company includes options and shares
to be issued.
Already, Mr Eamonn Rothwell owns over 10pc of
ICG. Combined, he and the other members of his team - Gearoid O'Dea,
Tony Kelly, John Reilly and Tom Corcoran - own over 14pc of the company
in total.
The other main shareholders in ICG include
institutions like AIB, Schroder Investment Managers and Zurich Financial
Services.
Mr Rothwell owns just over 82pc of takeover
vehicle Aella. The deal will be funded through debt from AIB.
This includes €499m as well as €90m in loan
notes. Management are also rolling over their shares and options with a
value of about €50m. [IRISH INDEPENDENT]
However, the success of the management buyout
has been called into question as ONE51 has invested over €25m buying up
a 5.2% stake in Irish Continental Group.
The Irish Examiner reports that the move raises
serious question marks about the fate of the management buyout of ?450
million, tabled less than two weeks ago.
Shares in the group, which owns Irish Ferries,
rose by 23c to ?19.50 in late trading on Friday.
The MBO led by chief executive Eamonn Rothwell
valued the company at ?18.50 per share.
Carl Bourke, equity analyst with Dolmen
Stockbrokers, said the move was interesting.
"Mr Lynch clearly has an interest in sea
transport given the 50/50 joint venture with Dublin Port and who knows
where this move will lead," he said.
Mr Lynch is the former boss of IAWS Plc, the
lifestyle food group.
He became managing director of One51 after it
moved from being a co-op to a private company more than a year ago.
One51 still boasts most of the dairy co-ops
among its stakeholders and has major plans to become a waste and wind
management group.
It also has a 10% share of OpenHydro which
earlier this week announced a multi-million contract to produce wave
energy for the Channel Islands.
His most noted investment to date has been the
€140m investment in NTR, the original toll road company on the M50.
That investment has been a major success and
gave the group a 25% stake, worth €380m today.
The One51 move on Friday took ICG's management
by surprise. A spokesman said the group was on course to bring out its
offer document next Tuesday and has been getting positive reaction to
its €18.50 bid.
Mr Bourke said the move was open to several
interpretations. It might simply mean that One51 saw a bigger counter
offer coming down the line, he said. [IRISH EXAMINER]
ISLE OF MAN STEAM PACKET
COMPANY
EMERAUDE FRANCE - the company has confirmed
the charter of the 74m Incat EMERAUDE FRANCE (ex ATLANTIC II / SEACAT
FRANCE) for the main summer season to replace the collision damaged SEA
EXPRESS I. She will be used to operate the Irish services between
June and September.
The vessel, currently berthed at Tilbury,
has a capacity for 450 passenger and 74 cars. She will sail to
Merseyside to be prepared for service.
BEN-MY-CHREE was delayed on Thursday morning March 15. She has come to
the assistance of a small cabin cruiser THE KERRY LEE.
At 04:30 the cruiser with three persons on board -
a male skipper (60), a female (41) and a
young male (14 ) contacted Liverpool Coastguard reporting that she had
lost steerage and that the female and young male were experiencing
severe sea sickness.
The BEN-MY-CHREE was asked by the Liverpool
coastguard to attend the scene which it is obliged to do this under the
SOLAS convention (Safety of Life at Sea). The passengers on board the
Kerry Lee were airlifted off by the RAF Anglesey coastguard rescue
helicopter 122 at 06:35.
The BEN-MY-CHREE remained at the scene till
06:45 when she was released by the Coastguard and arrived in Douglas at
08.30. THE KERRY LEE was towed into Fleetwood by the
RNLI.
SEA EXPRESS I - it is understood that she may
enter Cammell Laird #5 dry dock to patch up her hull. The dock was
vacated by HROSSEY on Sunday March 18.
MERSEY FERRIES
Plans for the new Merseyside Ferries
terminal building at the Pier Head, Liverpool has provoked some lively
opposition as reported by the Daily Post this week:
The proposed ferry terminal at Liverpool Pier
Head is bizarre, woefully inadequate, and resembles a doll's house, the
chairman of Merseyside Civic Society has warned.
Plans for the multi-million pound Mersey
Ferries facility are due to be debated at a meeting of Liverpool City
Council's planning committee tomorrow.
Planning officers are recommending the go-ahead
should be given for the three- storey structure
Dr Peter Brown, chairman of the civic society,
has now formally written to the council to register an objection to the
plan.
The terminal structure to be replaced is on the
water's edge, immediately in front of the Three Graces that serve as a
focal point within the World Heritage Site.
Dr Brown, based at the University of
Liverpool's Department of Civic Design, told the council: "It should be
self-evident that any building that is to be placed on this uniquely
sensitive site needs to possess at least a minimal degree of
architectural merit and should ideally display qualities that stand up
to scrutiny in terms of their aesthetics, materials, etc, and the
relationship between the proposed structure and its surroundings.
"The proposed new ferry terminal building fails
to meet any of the above criteria, and is simply not good enough to be
placed in such a vitally important location.
"The structure, overall shape and the bizarre
geometry of the windows bring to mind either a doll's house or the
outcome of an architectural student's failed first attempt, with brutal
lines reminiscent of a concrete Channel Island gun emplacement."
Dr Brown said historic restrictions on
permitted building height to the west of the Royal Liver Building prompt
questions as to whether three storeys can be allowed, let alone
justified on this site.
He added: "But if they can, then surely a much
more popular feature would be the retention of a significantly larger
roof or deck from which visitors can observe activity on the river or
the magnificent Pier Head backdrop, including the imminent prospect of
adding canal traffic to this scene.
"Overall, the scheme as proposed represents a
woefully inadequate missed opportunity to construct a building of
quality that will complement its world- class surroundings, and should
be roundly rejected until the developer can come up with a proposal that
better merits a place in this, the city's most cherished waterfront
location."
City planning manager Nigel Lee says the scheme
blends with the Museum of Liverpool planned for Mann Island. He also
said the design did not conflict with the waterfront's status as a
Unesco World Heritage Site. [DP March 12]
Despite the opposition the proposals were given the
go ahead as was reported on Tuesday March 13:
Plans for a new £10m ferry terminal at
Liverpool's Pier Head have been given the green light by planning
chiefs.
Ferry operator Merseytravel put forward
proposals to Liverpool City Council for a state-of-the-art building last
year. They have been drawn up in consultation with Liverpool City
Council, English Heritage and World Heritage officers. If ratified by
the full council, work on demolishing the terminal building would begin
in June ahead of an expected spring 2008 completion.
Councillor Mark Dowd, chair of Merseytravel,
hailed the planning committee's backing as "great news". "Our plans will
leave a lasting legacy from 2008, Liverpool's Capital of Culture year.
"The new building will offer much better facilities for ferry
passengers, commuters and the hundreds of thousands of visitors using
the ferries every year." The new three-storey building and terminal will
have improved cafe and shopping facilities, easy access to the landing
stage and a river viewing area. A low-rise environmentally-friendly
design has been developed to retain the view of the "Three Graces" from
the river as well as the views of the river from Water Street and
Brunswick Street. Materials would also complement the surrounding
buildings.
Following the approval of the plans Councillor Lady
Doreen Jones claimed she felt blackmailed into approving the plans [DP
March 14]:
Liverpool planning chairwoman Cllr Lady Doreen Jones
last night said she felt “blackmailed” into approving a controversial
new Mersey ferry terminal – describing it as looking like “an
architectural student’s failed first attempt.”
Liverpool council’s planning committee unanimously
approved plans for the £9.5m Mersey Ferries facility directly in front
of the Three Graces at Pier Head within the city’s World Heritage Site,
despite the lack of enthusiasm from its leading member.
Cllr Jones said the new terminal was “hardly the
design of the year” but Merseytravel said the plans would leave a
lasting legacy for Capital of Culture.
Objectors to the three-storey building, which will
include a first-floor tourist attraction and second-floor restaurant,
said the plans were a “woefully inadequate missed opportunity to
construct a building of quality that will complement its world-class
surroundings.
Subject to the decision being ratified by the full
council, work on demolishing the old terminal building – an outdated
tent structure – will start in June, with the new terminal opening for
business in June 2008.
Cllr Jones said she made her recommendations for
approval reluctantly.
While she agreed the proposals were an improvement on
the old ferry terminal – originally a 1960s bus station – she added:
“but nothing could be worse.”
She said: “There has been unfair pressure put on this
committee that if we don’t take these plans, we will lose the money set
aside for this development.
“I have said it before and I will say it again that I
object very strongly to blackmail.
“We had looked to see something a bit more in keeping
with the surrounding area.”
Dark glass in original designs has now been replaced
by clear glass and Portland Limestone for the new terminal building has
been chosen to match the Cunard and Port of Liverpool buildings.
Architects added that the low-rise design had also
been developed to retain the view of the Three Graces from the river and
the views of the river from Water Street and Brunswick Street.
But objector and campaigner Wayne Colquhoun, from
Liverpool Preservation Trust, told planners that they were playing a
dangerous game with the city’s waterfront.
He said: “If you had told me that it was possible to
come up with a worse design than the Shanghai Palace I would have said
it couldn’t be done. But I was wrong.
“The new terminal is monstrously high and does not
respect the aesthetic principles of what is already there.
“The committee has just given permission for a huge
Dormer window to be built on the most important and iconic part of
Liverpool’s waterfront.
“How can Lady Doreen say that she hates it and then
approve it?”
But Cllr Mark Dowd, chairman of Merseytravel, which
owns and operates the Mersey Ferries said: “This is great news. Our
plans will leave a lasting legacy from 2008, Liverpool’s European
Capital of Culture year.”
[CLICK
HERE] TO VIEW COMMENT ON THE CURRENT SORRY STATE OF THE PIER HEAD
FROM IRISH SEA SHIPPING - THE ONLINE SHIPPING MAGAZINE
As Mersey Ferries are still sharing Prince's Landing Stage with the Isle
of Man Steam Packet Company, the return to service of SUPERSEACAT TWO
next Friday means that Ferry services will be disrupted whenever
SUPERSEACAT TWO lies along side the stage due to the vessels greater
length compared to SEA EXPRESS I.
As a result Mersey Ferries have amended next weekend's timetable:
Friday 23 March
10:00 and 11:00 River Explorer cruises from
Liverpool cancelled
First River Explorer Cruise commences from
Liverpool at noon (subject to short delay)
Saturday 24 March
10:00 River Explorer Cruise terminates at
Liverpool at 10:50 which is the last service to Liverpool.
11:00 River Explorer Cruise from Liverpool
calls Seacombe at 11:10 and Woodside at 11:20 but does not return to
Liverpool.
River Explorer service just runs between
Seacombe and Woodside only for the rest of the day (10 past the hour at
Seacombe and 20 past the hour at Woodside).
Last full cruise leaves Seacombe at 17.10 and
Woodside at 17.20, calls at Seacombe at 18.10 and terminates at Woodside
at 18.20.
Sunday 25 March
Last River Explorer Cruise 4pm from Liverpool.
Last Direct Service 5pm from Liverpool calls at
Woodside at 17.10, and terminates at Seacombe 17.20.
Until the Ravestein SKYLINE BARGE 15 can be
repositioned on the site of the former George's Landing Stage the Mersey
Ferries service faces increasing disruption as the Steam Packet service
increases in frequency as the 2007 season gets underway.
Irish Sea Shipping understand that it remains
the intention to break up the sunken George's Stages using explosives.
This follows on from the previous attempt by Mammoet to salvage the
stage sections last autumn.
Mersey Ferries claim that they hope to be
operating from their own temporary stage by April - there isn't that
much time left!
MINEHEAD - PENARTH
There has been much talk about reinstating
regular ferry services across the Bristol Channel lining the south west
of England to south Wales. Since the winding down and withdrawal of the
seasonal P&A Campbell services direct cross channel sailings have only
been provided on an irregular basis by the Waverley Steam Navigation
Company operating the BALMORAL and WAVERLEY.
Now local business leaders have been reported
to be planning the introduction of a high speed catamaran service
operating between Minehead and Penarth in 2008.
Local press reports claim that a 138 passenger
fast craft could cross from Penarth to Minehead in around 35 minutes
connecting with a bus to Cardiff at Penarth.
The Minehead-Penarth run is planned to operate
in conjunction with an Ilfracombe-Swansea service.
Supporters of the ferry service, which could be
running by summer 2008, have agreed to make urgent applications for
finance, and bring together business leaders from the South West South
Wales to lead the commercial venture.
SEA CONTAINERS
SEA CONTAINERS are being blamed for delays in the redevelopment of
Stranraer Harbour this week in a BBC report:
A
marina development, waterfront regeneration and a casino licence are all
part of the ambitious plans.
One
of the first significant steps towards the new vision for the town is
the construction of a breakwater next to the town's west pier.
It
is part of a wider £1.3m project to develop a marina in the harbour.
That, in turn, is seen as vital to the overall improvement of the
waterfront area.
However, work in the area cannot start until permission is granted from
ferry company Sea Containers.
It
switched its operations from Stranraer to Troon in Ayrshire seven years
ago but still holds a seabed lease.
The
council - along with Scottish Enterprise - is funding the project but
says despite repeated assurances from the company, there has been no
progress.
The
delay is being blamed for already pushing up the project costs by
£130,000.
Councillors have agreed to raise the budget for the marina project by
that figure but the delay has led to concern from Dumfries and Galloway
MP Russell Brown.
"This is an issue that came past me at least 12 months ago," he said. "I
believed at that time I had a fairly positive response from Sea
Containers and it looked as if it was all moving forwards.
"It
would appear that this has lain around for a period of time and time is
money with these things."
He
said he was not interested in who was to blame for the delay but simply
in seeing things move forward.
"It
needs to be finalised once and for all and not left lying on somebody's
desk once again to potentially cost more money at a later stage," he
said.
"I'm down here in Westminster five minutes away from Sea Containers'
office along the river.
"If
I need to go and knock on somebody's door down there and try to move
things on then I am quite prepared to do that."
The
situation has been complicated by the fact that Sea Containers Services
Ltd - the legal tenant - filed for Chapter 11 protection under US
bankruptcy law last year.
The
company said that meant it had not been allowed by the US courts to make
arrears payments required under the terms of its lease.
It
also said that it was legally unable to pay towards works to remove
concrete piles from the harbour as requested by the Crown Estates.
"We
are well aware of the issues relating to the regeneration of Stranraer's
waterfront and are enthusiastic about the opportunities it would bring
to the area and the local community," said a Sea Containers
spokesperson.
She
added that the company had written to Mr Brown to say it was keen "in
any way possible" to reach a "satisfactory conclusion for the people of
Stranraer".
WESTERN LADY FERRIES
Owners of a small ferry
service operating in South Devon fear for the future of their business
if a major company introduces a new service. Last month, Stagecoach
unveiled plans to introduce a half-hourly sea shuttle service between
Torquay and Brixham using high-speed catamarans.
Brian Souter, Stagecoach
founder and chief executive, visited Torbay to meet resort bosses and
discuss the project.
He has pledged to spend £4
million on the initiative, but a further £1 million would be needed for
infrastructure for the all-year-round service and there have been
suggestions Torbay Council may subsidise it.
Sandie Armstrong,
operations manager of the Western Lady Ferry Service which has been
running between the two towns for 60 years, is concerned the firm has
never received any financial support from the council, yet Stagecoach
could receive a subsidy.
She said: "We have plied
the route on a seasonal basis for the past 60 years, providing a safe
and reliable crossing in 25 minutes from May to October with our
world-renowned Fairmile vessels, which originally served with coastal
forces of the Second World War and are placed on the Register of
National Historic Ships as the last of their kind to survive in UK
waters."
Mrs Armstrong said that
two years ago, a landing stage at Princess Pier was taken out of
commission due to storm damage, which led to the firm buying newer and
smaller boats.
She said that the area's
integrated transport policy has put forward the idea of a year-round
ferry service but, unlike buses, boat operators do not get subsidies.
"Having just invested
heavily in newer craft for the ferry service and in renewing engines,
running gear and other equipment to meet the high demand for safety of
passenger vessels, we were dismayed to read that Stagecoach were
proposing a new service on the same route that they we have covered for
the past 60 years," she said.
Mrs Armstrong raised
concerns about the viability and safety of high-speed catamarans,
particularly the impact it could have on the local industry which
supports about 40 summer jobs and 20 in the winter.
She said: "The local boat
operators plough their earnings, such as they are in some summers, back
into their boats and the local economy."
Torbay Council's deputy
mayor Coun Kevin Carroll said: "Stagecoach has put forward some very
exciting ideas for a proposed fast ferry service between Torquay and
Brixham.
"Their proposals do make
reference to the possibility of a cash injection from Torbay Council.
"However, discussions are
still at a very early stage and no decision will be taken without
extensive consultation with residents and local businesses." |