The Blairmont/New Amsterdam launch service which had started to run at a loss since the establishment of the Berbice River Bridge has been forced out of operation, resulting in many schoolchildren being affected.
Deonarine Mangal, 40, of Number One Settlement, Blairmont, owner of the launch – Miss Sonia – told Stabroek News that he shut down the service one month ago because “passengers not travelling like before and it cannot pay me.
“I sorry I had to close; the schoolchildren depended on the launch and at least my daily bread gone there. I depended on that to take care of my family.” He has put the boat up for sale and now has to see what other business to turn to.
His wife, a graduate teacher had quit her job after he fell ill for about one year a few years ago and plans to reapply for her job.
He had a “packed schedule” before the opening of the bridge in December 2007, with his first trip at 5:15 am and last one at 10:15 pm.
Six months later he was forced to reduce to two trips per day — at 7:35 am and at 3:15 pm to accommodate the schoolchildren
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The students paid a fare of $160 per day return, while the adults paid $280 return instead of $200.
But Mangal said not many adults used the service as they preferred to transact business or do their shopping right at Rosignol.
He said too that even if persons go to New Amsterdam it would not be too often and because of his new schedule they would go via the Berbice Bridge. According to him, his business was once so viable that he “used to refuse passengers sometimes.”
He pointed out that recently he was just earning $7,000 per day and he had to pay $3,000 for fuel, $2,000 mooring fee to the Transport & Harbours Department (T&HD) at the NA stelling and $1,000 to a worker.
That left him with “barely $1,000 and it couldn’t pay me. I had to find money to run my home, maintain the launch and send my two children to school.”
He tried hard to keep the service going and had even approached officials at T&HD to drop the mooring fee to $500 per day but his request was not granted.
Early last year the launched capsized after someone cut the stern-line and he spent $500,000 to purchase new batteries, alternator, starter and other parts to overhaul the engine.
He recalled that the boat had drifted away from where he had moored it at the Blairmont stelling and became stuck between some piles belonging to GuySuCo.
“After the tide dropped the boat capsized and water covered it.” He then had to “pump out the water” and was assisted in salvaging it.
He started the launch service in 2001 after building the [metal] launch at a cost of $7.5 million. He was also given a yearly contract with GuySuCo to transport workers. At present, he said, GuySuCo still owes him.
Mangal’s daughter attends school in New Amsterdam and is one of the persons affected. She did not have to pay cross but now he has to find extra money to send her via the bridge.
He admitted that it would be a little cheaper if she used the pontoon like most of the other students but he did not want her to risk reaching to school late.
A few other parents allow their children use the bridge even though it is costing them a more money. They said the children were crossing with the pontoon but reached to school late sometimes.
According to another parent, who has two children attending schools in New Amsterdam, although it would have been better if they used the bridge she cannot afford it.
She pointed out that the minibuses are charging the children the full fare of $600 return “even though they dress in their uniforms. Then they would put four and five children in a seat instead of three.”
The woman, who is a housewife, said she ends up paying close to $2,000 per day even though her husband who works as an operator at the sugar estate “would bring home only $10,000 some weeks.” She added that the $2,000 includes “spending-money because I don’t have a computer at home and they would have to go to the internet café after school some days to do their homework…”
She said the pontoon is really inconvenient because the children would have to stand for the entire trip.
Besides, the children have to wake up earlier to catch it because the gate closes at 7:15 am although it would not leave right away.
She said too that the pontoon is very slow and “many days they reach late to school and the gate would be closed.”
The children now have to leave home at 6:45 am when they used to leave at 7:20 am to get the launch and still got to school on time. She said she misses the launch and “glad if it can work again; it used to help out a lot.”
The woman related that her son has to write the CSEC exams this year and she cannot afford to send him for extra lessons.
“The situation is very depressing,” she said. “I have to burst my brains about how to make ends meet.” She depends on relatives for financial assistance although “I don’t like to ask anybody for anything…”
She said the “estate is offering computer courses so I would go and learn so I can get a job. They [children] are taking their education and I don’t mind going out of my way to help them.”
President of the Upper Corentyne Chamber of Commerce David Subnauth had told this newspaper that the children should not be prevented from using the bridge because of the price.
He had said “the price is high and that the time-span given for the bridge company to hand over the bridge is too long; they would make back that money long before that.”
He had suggested that government introduce a “shuttle-service” to facilitate the schoolchildren, which would involve a 30-seat bus going in front of the toll station to avoid paying the charges and taking the children across the bridge at a cheaper fare.
Poor business
Businesses in the vicinity of the Blairmont stelling have also been affected since the launch stopped working. They said that when the launch was operating more people used to stop in to shop when they passed.
This newspaper also observed that a snackette close to the stelling has been closed and seems to be falling apart.
Lakhram of New Amsterdam, who owns the Harriprashad Sawmill, located next to the Blairmont stelling, told this newspaper that since the launch stopped operating he had to lay off some of his workers who lived in New Amsterdam.
He said they used to walk to the New Amsterdam stelling in the mornings to catchthe launch and walked over to work after crossing for just $280 per day. He noted that the launch was faster, cheaper and more convenient to use.
According to him the work has slowed down and production has been affected. “The profit margin is small and it was an extra burden to pay $1,000 per day for the [few] workers to cross.” Besides, the buses take a long time to fill and by the time they go the long distance through Palmyra and D’ Edward the workers got to work late.
Lakhram acknowledged that the “bridge is good; it is convenient but for those who can afford it.”
He said too that because of the limited staff he “can’t operate the entire sawmill at the same time.” Meanwhile, most of the snackettes owners operating in the vicinity of the Rosignol Stelling had given up their stalls but new owners have taken over.
Almost all of the snackettes were still opened for business and the owners said “sales are slow but we would only make a limited amount of food.” Their businesses depend mostly on the fishermen from the nearby fisheries.
This newspaper was at the stelling around 4 pm on Friday when the pontoon arrived with schoolchildren, nurses and a few adults.
A few Route 50 minibuses were there waiting to pick them up. Within minutes the stelling was cleared, leaving only the Route 56 buses that take passengers across the bridge.
The Route 50 drivers were dissatisfied that they were not allowed to stop close to the Rosignol junction where vendors display their stalls, to pick up passengers.
They called for the authorities to remove the stalls from the road because they are causing an obstruction to traffic.
They said too that the gas price has risen to $206 per litre and to clear their expenses they would have to increase the fares. According to them, “two weeks money we earn is not enough to pay we bills…”
Blairmont Ferry Stelling
Residents were now concerned that the Blairmont Ferry Stelling/wharf operated by the T&HD that was rehabilitated at a cost of millions of dollars in 2006 would serve no purpose.
The stelling was upgraded for the pontoon to start plying the Blairmont/Stanleytown route. The rehabilitation was done even though the Berbice Bridge was in the process of being built.
Before the completion of the bridge, however, the pontoon stopped using the Blairmont route and was operating from New Amsterdam to Rosignol along with the MV Torani and Makouria to help ease the traffic congestion.
But commuters had pointed out that the arrangement was not very effective since one boat had to wait midstream almost one hour for the other vessels to remove from either stelling before it could moor.
A regional official in Region Six had told this newspaper that the Blairmont stelling was not being used as the area was silted up and very shallow.
He had said the river would have to be dredged before the pontoon could have continued using it.
Some persons commented that it was a shame that the stelling which is staffed with a full-time security guard is no longer being used. They pointed out that government should convert it to some other use where youths or other persons in the community can benefit.
