The troubled £3.5m Floating Bridge 6 will be replaced, the Isle of Wight Council has tonight (Thursday) announced.
[ Update: The Alliance statement issued last night ]
The council’s executive cabinet body unanimously agreed to replace the current chain ferry — which has been plagued with issues since it was installed in 2017 — in a “decision which has been a long time coming,” said Councillor Phil Jordan, the authority’s leader.
Jordan: This Island needs to know we are replacing the Floating Bridge
Speaking at the cabinet meeting, Councillor Jordan said he knew it was a decision people had been waiting for, and so had he.
He said,
“It is the start of a process we will have to go through but we have found a staged process which will enable us to bring the vessel forward more efficiently and quickly with a number of options coming forward.
“This Island needs to know we are replacing the Floating Bridge.”
What will inform next stages
The executive body agreed previous information, gathered by the council in multiple reports and reviews over the years should be used to inform the next stages of replacing the vessel.
The council would be working with consultants 3S, which recently carried out computer modelling and an analysis of Floating Bridge 6 and determined the vessel would always need a push boat to help it cross the river at strong tides.
The consultants also said any replacement vessel would have to be radically redesigned with a new hull or superstructure to be able to journey across the river successfully.
Jordan: Options will be researched
Councillor Jordan said some of the options the authority will look at may not be a “financial burden to the council” and that the decision “did not commit” the authority to additional investment in a new vessel at this time.
He said,
“There are options available which will be researched and brought back to us before we pull the trigger and get a new vessel.”
Love: The end is in sight
Councillor Karl Love, the ward representative for East Cowes, clapped when Councillor Jordan read out the recommendations, and said he felt since he had come into office he had dealt with nothing but the Floating Bridge.
He said the cabinet’s decision removes the heartache his community has suffered in the last seven years.
Councillor Love said,
“Remember this is not going to be a quick fix, this will be a few more years yet, but the end is in sight. Thank you for arriving at the beginning of the end.
“I am sure it will come as a great relief to taxpayers. We cannot continue to shed millions and millions of pounds on this when it should have been dealt with earlier.”
Plans for £250k strategy rejected
The decision overruled officers’ recommendations to create a £250,000 Medina Crossing Strategy, with an extra £100,000 allocated for staffing capacity.
Cabinet agreed the recommendations officers had set out would be used as an indicative process.
Councillor Jordan said the council will follow due process in undertaking the work.
The following was released at 10:44pm on the 14 Mar 2024 by The Alliance, from Councillor Phil Jordan, Leader of the Isle of Wight Council
We Will Replace the Floating Bridge
At the meeting of the Isle of Wight Council Alliance Cabinet on Thursday evening the Cabinet agreed to replace the current Floating Bridge and voted to commence the necessary technical groundwork that is the first step in this process.
Leader of the Council, Councillor Phil Jordan, said:
“We need an operational floating bridge that stops wasting Islanders money on failed fixes and increased costs, not only to help the local community and businesses, but also to provide relief to the Island’s road network.
“We don’t want to waste any more Council money on finding out information we already know. Replacing the floating bridge with one that works is now our clear stated intention.
“A lot of errors were made in early stages of procurement of the last floating bridge. So we can get on with matters, it is important that technical groundwork is undertaken to inform the performance and overall reliability of a new vessel, although, to be clear, the Council is not yet at the stage to vote on any financial models.”
Work carried out in respect of the Floating Bridge over recent years will be used to inform the next stages and will help ensure the necessary work can be streamlined and carried out as quickly and efficiently as possible. This includes work previously undertaken by the consultants 3S, who have supported the recent review and have extensive knowledge of the process and background. 3S positively support the stated aim and project to replace the Floating Bridge.
Councillor Jordan, concluded:
“This decision has been a long time coming and much work has been necessary to get us to this point. There is still much to do but this is a major step. We are pleased that as an Administration the Alliance have been able to fulfil our promise to do this for the benefit of our residents and the economy of the Island.”
Article edit
07.56am 15th Mar 2024 – Added statement from Alliance, released at 22:44pm on the 14th Mar.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
