After a mysterious visit to see the last floating bridge, Isle of Wight councillors have answered questions as to why they were there.
Spotted yesterday (Thursday) onboard the vessel in Gosport, Cllr Dave Stewart, leader of the Isle of Wight Council, said it was only a fact-finding mission to see what condition the boat was in.
Stewart: I have physically seen it and I would not bring it back
Although the Isle of Wight Council no longer owns the Floating Bridge 5, having sold it on its retirement from service in 2017 — so why were they there?
Cllr Stewart said:
“A lot of people talk about bringing Floating Bridge 5 back, so we said to ourselves sometimes you need to inform yourself on what the state was.
“Now, I can say I have physically seen it and I would not bring it back. To be honest, I would call what I saw a rusty wreck.”
Ward: ‘Could’ come back but would cost an ‘awful lot of money to do so’
One of the other councillors on the visit Cllr Ian Ward, the council’s boss for infrastructure and transport, however, muddied the water by saying the old vessel could possibly come back into service but it would cost an ‘awful lot of money to do so’.
He said:
“We have heard so many stories that the engines were ripped out and there were holes so we went across to see what the truth was.
“It probably could go back into service but it would cost an awful lot of money to bring it back to the useable standard.”
Stewart: We are looking at options for the future
Responding to those comments, Cllr Stewart said Cllr Ward had an engineering background, where he didn’t, but to bring it up to modern standards and make it safe again for people to travel on would be too much.
Cllr Stewart said:
“We are looking at options for the future to see how we support the current Floating Bridge.
“I am pleased to say it has been back for over a week now, carrying more than 3,000 passengers.”
Stewart: Hoped the service would be fine
Cllr Stewart said he was not saying the £3.2 million Floating Bridge 6 ‘won’t have problems’ but he hoped the service would be fine and continue to run as other options are explored.
Side thrusters
One of the preferred options now going forward is to install side thrusters on, but if it comes with a hefty price tag, potentially ‘hundreds of thousands of pounds’, Cllr Stewart said they will have to question whether they can afford to do that at the moment.
He would like to see the issue resolved as the passenger launch service wasn’t that disability-friendly.
Work taking place on FB5
The visit to the old Floating Bridge 5 came a day after work was spotted being done to the boat by a Gosport resident who said he heard the engines running and what could have been sand-blasting, sparking rumours the vessel could come back.
Responding to questions about the work, an Isle of Wight Council spokesperson said:
“We no longer have any involvement with it, nor are we involved in, or have any knowledge of any works on the vessel.”
Experts suggested by opposition councillors to help solve problems on Floating Bridge 6 joined them on the boat to have a look.
Love: Good to see Floating Bridge 5 again for myself
Cllr Karl Love, East Cowes ward representative, was also pictured on the visit and said:
“I have a duty to explore and to do the very best I can for my residents.
“It was logical to organise a site visit to assess its condition and it was good to see the old Floating Bridge 5 again for myself, with others and the experts, rather than hearing different stories of its condition from others.
“This enabled us to have engaging discussions.”
Cllr Lora Peacey-Wilcox, the representative for Cowes Medina, said she was asked to attend the visit by Cllr Love as the representative for the other side of the Medina and echoed his comments.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may be been made by OnTheWight. Ed
Image: © Tony Weaver
