On Tuesday morning, News OnTheWight asked Isle of Wight transport operators whether they would continue to ask for the wearing of face coverings on their service from Monday (19th), when Coronavirus legal restrictions to wear them indoors and on public transport ends.
While they’ve been coming to their conclusions, we’ve held off. This afternoon (Thursday), the majority of them had responded.
Wightlink: The pandemic is still not over
Wightlink say they will continue its policy of requiring customers to wear a face covering indoors on ships and FastCats and at ports, unless they are exempt. Everyone is asked to respect social distancing.
They say they will maintain high standards of hygiene on its ferries and at ports by frequent cleaning and the use of onboard fogging machines, that swiftly clean large areas. Hand sanitisers will be available and screens will remain in place at cafes.
Wightlink’s Fleet and Operations Director John Burrows says,
“Although increasing numbers of people are now fully vaccinated, the pandemic is still not over. We all need to take sensible precautions to stop the spread of coronavirus, despite the easing of regulations and that means everyone still needs to wear a face covering indoors, unless they are exempt. We will keep this policy under review.
“Fresh air is all important as it helps stop the spread of coronavirus. Wightlink’s passenger lounges are spacious and well-ventilated and customers can enjoy plenty of sea breezes on the outside decks.
“All customers, including foot passengers, should book in advance to be sure of travelling on the sailing of their choice, as we expect the summer to be busy.”
Hovertravel: Cautious approach
Neil Chapman from Hovertravel says,
“With the Government removing the final set of restrictions next week, I wanted to assure you that Hovertravel’s first priority will always be to protect the safety of its passengers and staff. Our Health and Safety team has conducted risk assessments on all aspects of the Hovertravel journey and I wanted to explain our cautious approach to what will, and will not, change after Monday.
“Our hand sanitisers, both onboard and in the terminals, will remain so that customers can clean their hands during their journey. Similarly we will continue to use our low-touch processes, such as scanning your tickets and our enhanced cleaning regime for all touchpoints. Our terminals will return to full capacity, matching the ability to fill our craft and allowing us to keep a faster flow of passengers across the entire Hovertravel experience.
“Whilst we recognise the law has changed, we, along with the other ferry operators and the Isle of Wight Council, will continue to ask for face coverings to be worn during your journey. We believe that this measure is an important step in safeguarding our passengers and our people.
“The entire Hovertravel team has worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic, dedicating themselves to providing an essential link across the Solent. They understand their work contributes to the wider community, such as helping 10,000 journeys for Wessex Cancer Trust patients over the last year, and their commitment has been unwavering. I am sure you all join in me in thanking them.
“We have to be personally responsible and consider the risks to both ourselves and others. As people start to travel more, and some may have not travelled for over a year, customers will make different choices. Please respect that and give your fellow passengers the space and time to travel in their own way, at their own pace.”
Southern Vectis: Important we respect everyone’s right to choose whether to wear a face covering
Southern Vectis chose to refer us to their trade body, the Confederation of Passenger Transport, who told us the bus company will not be mandating the wearing of face coverings from Monday. He added,
“We expect that many people, especially in busy places, will follow the Prime Minister’s call to continue to wear a face covering as a courtesy to others. Passengers though will find it difficult to understand why the Prime Minister has singled out public transport as somewhere to wear a face covering when a range of other activities share its characteristics.
“We now need to see clear guidance for operators and customers but, in the absence of regulations, it is important that we respect everyone’s right to choose whether to wear a face covering.
“The industry is doing everything it can to ensure people can travel with confidence. Operators will continue to deliver enhanced cleaning regimes, ensure buses are well ventilated and provide tools such as apps to allow customers to see how busy their bus is and help plan their journey in advance.”
Red Funnel: Passengers should continue to wear a face covering
From Monday Red Funnel will be making some changes across its service.
From 19th July there will be no legal requirement to wear a face covering, however the Prime Minister has recommended that people continue to wear face coverings in “crowded and enclosed spaces, such as on public transport”.
Passengers and team members should continue to wear a face covering whilst on board Red Funnel ferries, when inside terminal spaces and whilst embarking or disembarking, unless exempt, under 11 years of age, on outside decks, or when eating/drinking.
Fran Collins, Chief Executive at Red Funnel said,
“Government guidance is clear and recommends people continue to wear face coverings in crowded and enclosed spaces, such as public transport. The safety of passengers and our team members is our number one priority, and we continue to follow the latest government guidance.
“We trust our teams and passengers to make the right decision at the right time and expect that the vast majority will continue to wear a face covering when travelling with us.”
Throughout the pandemic, Red Funnel has been restricting passenger number on board ferries. From 19th July, its services will return to normal capacity levels.
Air not recirculated
On all vehicle crossings, the outside decks are available for passengers to make use of. A fresh air filtration system is also operated across all Red Funnel services, ensuring passengers benefit from knowing the air on board is fresh and not recirculated.
To ensure high levels of hygiene at all times, Red Funnel’s high frequency cleaning schedule will remain in place. This includes full sanitization of all customer facing areas and high touchpoints, including tables, counter surfaces, hand rails, door handles and toilets, between crossings. Hand sanitizer stations will continue to be available throughout the ferries and terminals, and Perspex screens will remain in place at service counters. Team members will continue to make regular safety announcements and signage will be on display to encourage good hygiene.
‘Stay in vehicle’ service
The ‘stay in vehicle’ service will remain in place for passengers who are medically vulnerable or who need to self-isolate during their crossing.
Red Funnel continues to encourage contactless payments, although cash payments will be accepted across the business soon.
The Red Funnel Booking Guarantee remains in place, giving passengers options should their plans change due to Covid-19.
The summary
So in summary, Wightlink, Hovertravel and Red Funnel all say they will continue to ask passengers to wear face covering, whilst Southern Vectis won’t.
Island Line doesn’t have the issue to deal with, because after seven and a half months closed, it still hasn’t reopened and won’t do so until at least the end of the summer.
Article edit
4.25pm 15th July 2021 – Red Funnel update added
Image: Waldemar Brandt under CC BY 2.0
