Travel ambassadors are being introduced on cross-Solent routes at holiday time to encourage people to behave and travel the right way.
It follows concerns ‘selfish’ people were not following the ‘hand, face, space’ precautions on board ferries to protect other people
Lack of Covid measures
Speaking at a meeting of the Isle of Wight Council’s local outbreak engagement board, councillors said despite seeing ferries rammed with passengers, hardly anyone was wearing face coverings, continuing to social distance or using hand sanitiser.
Raising the issue, Cllr Ian Stephens, deputy leader of the council, said it seemed very haphazard and while the council was doing all it could to get people to adhere to the guidance, it was a pinch point with people coming to the Island ignoring the guidance.
He said it was going to cause the Island grief in the long term and questioned whether enough was being done, on both sides of the Solent and travel operators to Covid safety.
Leader: They are selfish and ignore all of those signs
Leader of the council, Cllr Lora Peacey-Wilcox, said people ignore the messages onboard and there is now no legal obligation to wear face masks.
She said,
“My thought is: always protect yourself — if I wear a mask, keep my distance and use hand sanitiser then I am doing the most that I can do.
“It is sad people do not think about the others who are travelling, cancer patients or really vulnerable people, but they are selfish and ignore all of those signs.”
Getting tearful, Cllr Peacey-Wilcox said people would be having a very different Christmas this year, with family missing due to Covid.
No constraints on travel
The council’s assistant chief executive, Wendy Perera, said the country was open, with no constraints on travel as there were during lockdowns or the tier system, so it was down to personal responsibility, doing the right thing for yourself, friends and family.
She said the council was working with travel ambassadors, who will either be directly onboard the crossings or in the ports, to help people understand the message of travelling the right way and protecting the Isle of Wight.
The operators, Ms Perera said, have their hands tied as they have no way of enforcing the precautionary measures.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is part of. Read here to find about more about how that scheme works on the Island. Some alterations and additions may have been made by News OnTheWight. Ed
