Study cites safety
Ferry passengers should vacate vehicles, says independent risk assessment
An independent risk assessment released Friday says passengers should vacate their vehicles while travelling on ferries in the province.
This comes after nearly a year of complaints from the Bell Island ferry users group, who argue passengers with medical concerns should be allowed to remain in their vehicles.
Since the MV Legionnaire came into service in late July 2017, passengers on all ferries in the province were told they are not allowed to remain in their vehicles during crossings. That prompted some people on Bell Island to advocate for the right to stay in their vehicle for medical reasons.
The risk assessment conducted in April by Lloyd’s Register considered hazards to passengers who remained in their vehicles compared to passengers who vacated their vehicles while the ferries were in transit.
The report concluded that risks associated with passengers vacating their vehicles were low, and cited possible dangers of passengers remaining in their vehicles included getting hit by a vehicle or having difficulty evacuating the ferry in an emergency.
The report specifically mentioned travellers with medical issues, stating exceptions cannot be made because of the aforementioned risks and because the medical community preferred not to issue medical passes.
The chairman of the Bell Island Ferry Users Committee said people are disappointed with the results of the risk assessment.
Tom Nolan said he will collect comments from people affected over the weekend and will continue to press the issue.
Regarding the lack of uptake in the medical community to issue passes, Nolan said he spoke with “a few doctors that 100 per cent don’t agree with (the decision) and they’re fighting it and saying the government cannot override them.”
“A lot of people are refusing now to travel for medical appointments, and what it’s going to do is it’s going to cause
another small community in Newfoundland to totally shut down. In all reality, for anyone with serious medical conditions, they’re going to be forced to come over to St. John’s and stay there.”
Minister of Transportation and Works Steve Crocker said the report supports the department’s position that passengers should vacate their vehicles.
“But we continue to find ways to improve safety practices and we anticipate fully implementing all recommendations in the report in the near future,” Crocker said.
Meanwhile, Nolan said the ferry users committee will hold the government to that, noting
there are several recommendations in the report that are yet to be implemented by the government.
Nolan specifically pointed to the need for a separate seating area for people with special medical conditions, which he said prompted two people to move off the island to St. John’s when they felt they couldn’t travel back and forth safely.
Other recommendations in the report include more training for crews, and enlisting medical and accessibility groups to help ferry users understand the benefits of safety-related policies.