Prime Minister Freundel Stuart has thrown his support behind the long-mooted regional ferry service.
Today he commended the government of Trinidad and Tobago for recently “taking the bull by the horns” and giving a firm commitment to getting the service operational as soon as possible.
Stuart told the 41st annual general meeting of the Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA) at Hilton Barbados a final report on the CARICOM?Study of the Feasibility of Establishing a Fast Ferry Service in the Southern Caribbean had concluded that the market demand for the proposed service needed to be tested and proven on the high density traffic routes.
The report had recommended that a six-month pilot project be implemented in order to test that demand, and Stuart believed the study was “a step in the right direction and important confirmation that such a venture could be profitable when the potential cargo and passenger revenues were taken into consideration”.
Trinidad and Tobago’s Transport Minister Devant Maharaj subsequently announced plans to introduce a fast service ferry from Trinidad and Tobago to the Eastern Caribbean following his Prime Minister’s earlier disclosure to CARICOM.
Proposals for the Trinidad-based service were first disclosed to heads of government by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at a July 1 CARICOM?meeting and were supported by St Lucia’s Prime Minister Stephenson King and Guyana’s president Bharrat Jagdeo. (GC)
