Back in October 2020, News OnTheWight worked on a Deep Dive series revealing the then-latest costs associated with Floating Bridge 6.
Floating Bridge 6 (FB6) is the £3.2m vessel that the Isle of Wight council has subsequently laid out in excess of multi-millions for due to failures from the day it went into service in May 2017 to present.
Racking up the costs
Getting a handle on the total costs to date is not straightforward, but they look something like this:
- Oct 2020 to Jan 2022: Costs minus income £2,418,420
- Aug 18 to Sep 20: Costs minus income £1,175,599
- Start to Aug 18: £6,471,217 (not including income)
There would be other internal costs that have not been accounted for and the Solent LEP agreed to fund at least £3m for the procurement of FB6.
However, it’s worth noting that Floating Bridge 5 has been widely reported as having made a profit each year, putting money back into the coffers of the council. FB6 has made a loss every year since it first entered service nearly five years ago.
A timely update
Having had more than a year go by since our Deep Dive series – during which time the bridge has been out of service for months on end, there would have been an increased cost for the tender (Jenny Boat) needed to ferry pedestrians and cyclists across the River Medina, not to mention the lack of income from vehicle traffic – News OnTheWight put in an FOIA request for the latest costs, income and capital expenditure.
We now have that information and can share with readers below.
Loss of more than £2.3m
When comparing the expenditure and capital costs alongside the income, between October 2020 to Jan 2022, it’s clear there are still serious problems with FB6.
| Description | Cost |
|---|---|
| Expenditure (Oct 20 to Jan 22) | £2,841,836 |
| Capital expenditure (Oct 20 to Mar 2022) | £187,869 |
| Income (Oct 20 to Jan 22) | £611,285 |
| Total | -£2,418,420 |
Revenue Expenditure Oct 2020 – Jan 2022
The first table below sets out the breakdown of expenditure for FB6. This includes the usual running costs you would expect, such as staff pay and pensions, as well as fuel costs, insurance and banking fees, etc.
It also includes a large sum attributed to ‘private contractors’ which might puzzle some. This relates to the cost of putting on the Jenny Boat when FB6 was out of service for 3+ months, as well as the cost of the push boat (MV Seaclear) which is required to hold FB6 in place during certain tides.
| Oct'20-Mar'21 £ | Apr'21-Jan'22 £ | TOTAL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| NJC General Staff Gross Pay | 223,922 | 374,766 | 598,688 |
| NJC General Staff National Insurance | 16,106 | 29,448 | 45,555 |
| NJC General Staff Pension | 46,359 | 76,857 | 123,216 |
| Training | 2,000 | 1,250 | 3,250 |
| Recruitment Advertising | 0 | 44 | 44 |
| Pension Enhancements | 1,012 | 2,041 | 3,053 |
| Building Maintenance | 1,043 | 256 | 1,299 |
| Planned Maintenance | 1,162 | 52 | 1,213 |
| Security of Building | 424 | 604 | 1,028 |
| Electricity | 1,168 | 2,861 | 4,029 |
| Building & Room Rent | 1,905 | 3,809 | 5,714 |
| Rates | 0 | 19,012 | 19,012 |
| Water and Sewerage | 232 | 514 | 746 |
| Cleaning Contracts | 21 | 26 | 47 |
| Refuse Collection | 489 | 830 | 1,319 |
| Premises Insurance | 1,851 | 2,026 | 3,877 |
| Fuel Costs | 11,697 | 16,482 | 28,178 |
| Public Transport Fares | 0 | 79 | 79 |
| Transport Insurance | 11,352 | 20,892 | 32,244 |
| Operational Equipment | 14,381 | 48,605 | 62,986 |
| Fire Fighting Equipment | 7 | 247 | 254 |
| Stationery | 61 | 59 | 120 |
| Clothing & Laundry | 1,374 | 6,439 | 7,813 |
| Advertising & Public | 0 | 120 | 120 |
| Medical Fees | 0 | 17 | 17 |
| Insurance Premiums | 6,716 | 6,331 | 13,047 |
| Banking Fees | 3,677 | 7,549 | 11,227 |
| Professional Service | 137,452 | 123,805 | 261,256 |
| Payment to Private Contractors | 335,004 | 1,276,971 | 1,611,975 |
| Internal Recharges | 235 | 97 | 332 |
| Postage - Internal recharge | 0 | 30 | 30 |
| Printing - Internal Recharge | 18 | 0 | 18 |
| Training - Internal Recharge | 0 | 50 | 50 |
| TOTAL | 819,667 | 2,022,169 | 2,841,836 |
Notes:
1. This report excludes costs for internal central support service recharges and depreciation. These costs are however included in the published audited financial statement figures.
2. This report excludes expenditure of £27,880 that was used to transport school children by separate launch during Covid pandemic, and £47 on hand sanitizer
3. This report excludes capital expenditure
Capital expenditure
The capital expenditure from October 2020 to date totalled more than £187,000. This was the period where the Floating Bridge was out of action for several months, during which time more problems were discovered, and a great deal more work than expected had to take place.
The breakdown of capital costs can be seen below.
| FB6 Capital works description | Value |
|---|---|
| Hydraulic system repair August 2020 | £39,213.66 |
| Hydraulic system repair August 2021 | £27,813.87 |
| Work to develop chain clearance options and support trials | £9,720 |
| Design work for Variable Message Signage Units | £423.64 |
| Design and manufacture pedestrian ramp to be deployed on exceptionally high tides | £4,366.25 |
| Remove waiting area canopy and provide galvanised steelwork and railings | £18,097.29 |
| Partial purchase cost of VMS units | £55,742.25 |
| Purchase of new chains | £23,750 |
| Supply, installation and commission of CCTV System | £8,742.5 |
| Total | £187,869.46 |
Income
Foot Passenger and Vehicle Income between October 2020 and January 2022 is not surprisingly, less than you would expect, given FB6 was out of service for some time during that period.
| Oct 2020- Mar 2021 | Apr 2021 - Jan 2022 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle Income | £97,421 | £287,741 | £385,163 |
| Foot Passengers | £58,180 | £167,942 | £226,122 |
| Total | £155,601 | £455,684 | £611,285 |
Mediation continues
The Isle of Wight Council are currently in mediation with the designer (BCQT) and builder (Mainstay Marine) of FB6, prior to taking legal action over the failures of the design and build and subsequent losses to the Council.
Cllr Phil Jordan, the cabinet member responsible for transport and infrastructure, confirmed at last week’s Cabinet meeting that “mediation hasn’t finished or stopped and IWC did not walk away from mediation”.
It had been reported earlier in the week that two days were set out for the IWC, the designer and builder of Floating Bridge 6 to reach a settlement, but the “the council walked away empty-handed”. Cllr Jordan refuted this claim and said mediation was ongoing.
Article edit
8.30am 18th Mar 2022 – Added section near top of article setting out costs to date minus income
