Earlier in the week Isle of Wight councillors called on cross-Solent ferry operators to do more to protect vulnerable passengers attending medical appointments.
Cllrs Quigley, Dore and Jarman all expressed concerns about the lack of face coverings being worn by customers on Red Funnel and Wightlink ferry crossings.
Questions to ferry companies and Police
News OnTheWight put a series of questions to the ferry companies, as well as the Police, to find out what they are doing to protect their staff and customers – some of whom are more vulnerable than others as they are using the ferry to attend medical appointments.
The questions we sent to the ferry companies were:
- Is it your understanding that it’s currently the law that passengers wear masks on board?
- What is your estimate of the percentage of passengers on your ferries that are wearing masks?
- Do your onboard staff ask / remind passengers to wear masks?
- What’s the usual reaction? / Do they have success in getting passengers to wear masks?
- Would you consider having third party contractors onboard enforcing the law to wear masks? (as this had been suggested Cllr Dore)
Both ferry companies chose to ignore several of the questions. See their answers below.
Wightlink: Expects customers to obey the law
Wightlink told News OnTheWight,
“Wightlink expects its customers to obey the law requiring everyone on public transport to wear face coverings, unless they are exempt.
“There is clear signage at the ports and on ships, supported by full information about the regulations on the Wightlink Website, and in customer communications.”
Wightlink: Work closely with Police and Isle of Wight council
The spokesperson for Wightlink said that while their staff cannot enforce mask wearing once on board, they will welcome Travel Ambassadors onboard (see below for details) to encourage the use of face coverings.
They explained,
“Wightlink staff remind customers boarding ferries of the law on face coverings and this is further reinforced in the Captain’s message at the start of each sailing.
“All vessels are spacious and as fewer people are travelling at this quiet time of year, there is plenty of room for people to find space.
“There are outside seating areas on all Wightlink ferries if any customers would prefer not to travel inside the vessels.
“While Wightlink staff cannot enforce mask wearing once on board, we work closely with Police and Isle of Wight Council and will welcome Travel Ambassadors onboard to encourage the use of face coverings.”
Red Funnel: Increasing announcements and signage across terminals and ferries
Red Funnel followed a similar line as Wightlink. A spokesperson for Red Funnel told News OnTheWight,
“In line with the latest government guidance, unless exempt, wearing a face covering is a legal and mandatory requirement for customers and team members on board and within our terminals. Customers will be able to remove face coverings to eat and drink.
“We are continuing to increase the frequency of our announcements to share guidance about face coverings, as well as increasing signage across our terminals and ferries. We also encourage anyone who needs support with social distancing whilst on board to speak with a member of our team, who will be happy to assist.
“The safety of our teams and passengers is our number one priority and we will continue to be led by government recommendations to ensure we are able to provide essential travel services in the safest possible environment.”
Police: Most cases by staff in the first instance
News OnTheWight asked Hampshire Constabulary whether they were aware of the fact that many passengers have not been wearing face coverings.
We also asked:
- How many Police have been onboard, on duty to enforce the current mask law?
- What current plans do you have to put Police on board to enforce the wearing of masks?
A spokesperson for the Police told News OnTheWight,
“Officers are not deployed to monitor mask wearing on ferries.
“We know that ferry terminals are displaying signage regarding the current requirement to wear masks on public transport and staff have a responsibility to ensure passengers are compliant whilst on board.
“If officers encounter individuals not wearing masks on public transport, we will speak to them and explain the new requirements. We will engage, explain and encourage the person to comply and only if considered necessary and proportionate, we will move to enforcement.
“Our experience from previous restrictions around face coverings suggest that, in most cases, incidents involving non-compliance are resolved by staff in the first instance.”
Enforcement shouldn’t always equal police involvement
The Hampshire Constabulary went on to add,
“Enforcement doesn’t and shouldn’t always equal police involvement. Businesses, local authorities, and licensing authorities have responsibility for ensuring premises are Covid-Safe and compliant.
“It is therefore vital that we all play our part in reminding the public of the requirements and encouraging them to comply with these.
“We will continue to respond to incidents where individuals are violent or abusive towards retail or transport staff or members of the public.”
Council’s Travel Ambassadors
After the October half-term the Isle of Wight council announced they would be working with Travel Ambassadors to help people understand the message of travelling the right way and protecting the Isle of Wight.
They said the Travel Ambassadors would be introduced on cross-Solent routes at holiday time to encourage people to follow the rules at the time.
News OnTheWight has asked the council today (Thursday) when they expect the Travel Ambassadors to start working on the ferries.
A spokesperson told News OnTheWight,
“The Travel Ambassador scheme is being delivered by Visit Isle of Wight on behalf of the Isle of Wight Council.
“This phase of the project is currently being set up in partnership with the cross-Solent providers, and the dates for when the Ambassadors will start work are expected to be available next week.
“Each route will be different depending on the service and the key times identified.
“Although some staff will be working on board the ferries, the majority are expected to be located at the mainland ports, engaging with travellers prior to embarkation.
“All the relevant transport operators are fully supporting this initiative, and will also be offering new portside and onboard messaging on screens.”
Latest face covering study
The Internationally-recognised Max Planck Society have recently published a detailed study which shows the maximum risks of being infected by the Coronavirus for different scenarios with and without masks.
The summary is that three metres social distancing is not enough to ensure protection if people are not wearing masks. They say that even at that distance, it takes less than five minutes for an unvaccinated person standing in the breath of a person with Covid-19 to become infected with almost 100 percent certainty.
However, if both people are wearing well-fitting medical or, even better, FFP2 masks, the risk drops dramatically.
Read more on their Website.
Image: thenationalguard under CC BY 2.0
