Saturday, July 5 2008

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CONCERNED: Salim Gool, president of the San Fernando Fishing Co-operative Society....

PRESIDENT of the San Fernando Business Association, Daphne Bartlett says she feels the cost to travel on the San Fernando to Port-of-Spain water-taxi should be $10.

The cost proposed is $15 for a one-way trip, but Bartlett said that charging such as exorbitant price was unreasonable because of the average citizen’s income.

“Commuters should benefit and the rate should be highly subsidised. Prices are already so high with the cost of living, and while we can afford it, Government should subsidise it.” At present, commuters are paying $13 by taxi and $6 and $4 respectively by air-conditioned and non air-conditioned buses.

The water taxis arrived in Trinidad on Monday.

The arrival of the three hydro cruiser (HC) catamarans, worth an estimated US$10 million (TT$63 million) each, is the first phase of the water taxi service which is expected to cost more than TT$250 million to put into operation.

At last week’s monthly statutory meeting of the San Fernando City Corporation, Mayor Kenneth Ferguson said the water taxis should set sail at the end of July or early August.

Sandra Maharaj and Vijay Goberdhan, passengers waiting at the bus terminal at King’s Wharf, San Fernando on Thursday, told Newsday they felt the $15 one-way fare was too high. Maharaj said: “I think it should be $10. I would take the watertaxi but on and off.” William McNeilly, a Port-of-Spain resident, said he would take the water-taxi, adding that it would be quite good to get away from the highway traffic.

Another passenger said that she preferred to travel with a taxi because it was more convenient and comfortable, but was not against trying the water-taxi.

Bartlett also suggested that the Tobago ferry should make a trip from San Fernando once a day. Bartlett said the water-taxis were something that they were lobbying for a long time and felt that the ferry service would not affect the fishing industry in any big way.

However, Salim Gool, president of the San Fernando Fishing Co-operative Society, was of the belief no one cared about the livelihood of the fishermen. He said fishermen were not wholly against the water-taxis, but said with all the on-going development, there would soon be no fishing in the Gulf of Paria.

Listing development projects in La Brea, Claxton Bay, and others by PetroCanada and Atlantic LNG, he pointed out that the entire Gulf of Paria would eventually be taken away from fishermen. “Development is doing away with our mangroves, our beaches and our livelihoods.

New projects are coming on stream and what will remain of the fishing industry?” he asked.

Gool added that so far, no one from the Fisheries Division in the Agriculture Ministry or from the Works Ministry has met with the fishermen to listen to their concerns.

He wants to know what were the ministries’ plans for fishermen in the Gulf of Paria. “This water-taxi is coming to affect our lives, and they did not even offer us a job with the ferry service,” he said.

Gool told Newsday that even the newly built fishing centre which was supposed to be for their use, is being taken up by the water-taxi. “First time we getting something, the water taxis taking it back. They are using parts of the grounds to accommodate the construction of a jetty for passengers.” .