By Isle of Wight Observer
When taxpayers have forked out £20 million to support public infrastructure, benefitting a private company, most people would think it only polite for the company to at least show up and say, “Thank you.”
On Friday, Ryde Pier reopened to Island Line trains after a substantial restoration project. Invitations to the ceremony were sent well in advance, yet there wasn’t a single Wightlink representative to be seen.
But it wasn’t just Wightlink staff who were missing in action; there were also no FastCats, no Wightlink passengers, and no sign of the “integrated transport system” there was much talk about.
General manager of Island Line, Mark Dunn, enthusiastically discussed the importance of “integrated transport” for residents and tourists, carefully avoiding any mention of the glaring absence of Wightlink and its passengers.
Ribbon-cutting duties were handled by IW Council leader, Phil Jordan, and East Wight MP, Joe Robertson, who sang the praises of the eight-month-long restoration work. They must surely have been stifling a smirk as they welcomed the train that appeared on the expensive new line that was connecting all the non-existent train passengers to the edge of the Solent.
After the ceremony, the specially invited guests were whisked off to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, to see how the salvaged and donated rail infrastructure had been incorporated into its operations.
Why were Wightlink missing in action? According to their spokeswomen, both Wight Ryders were out of service due to mechanical issues. A shuttle service was eventually arranged using a charter vessel, but Wightlink’s absence at the ceremony itself was harder to explain. When pressed on this, the spokeswoman responded, with the straight-faced assurance, that: “Wightlink is delighted Island Line is open again. A representative had planned to attend the ceremony but unfortunately was unable to be at the event.”
Red Funnel also experienced problems with Red Falcon and announced cancellations on its Red Jet service due to staff absences on what should have been a key weekend for our tourism economy.
Perhaps, for any future transport infrastructure projects, organisers should factor in an additional budget to lay on a private boat service.
