THE Transport and Harbours Department speedboat
‘ ALFORD C’ launched its ferry service across the Berbice River on Monday.
But parents residing on the west bank of the river protested the move yesterday, and are calling on the relevant authorities to have the MV Sandaka pontoon returned to the run.
The placards they bore told their concerns, ranging from ‘ too dangerous to encourage’, ‘Government unjust to children’,  ‘buses for the children to cross’, to ‘ poor planning’, ‘incompetence’, and ‘no to speedboats ‘.
In addition, the group collectively said the increased cost for travelling is overwhelming, while the safety of the wooden vessel, which is fitted with just one outboard engine, leaves much to be desired.
A mother of two  related that  the use of the vessel brings an additional cost to her budget, as she previously paid $200 each for the monthly contract  for her children’s crossing, and being a contractual worker, she pays $1300 for the same period, as against the current fare of $120 for a return trip.
According to the woman who spoke on condition of anonymity, the contract for June has not yet expired and commuters are forced to adjust by paying the increased sum.
However, this newspaper was informed by a T&HD staff member that the contract previously issued, was accepted by the entity.
This newspaper, observed that although  persons were hesitant in crossing with the smaller vessel and took buses instead to cross via the Berbice River bridge, others waited, particularly school children and nurses , to ‘catch a ride’ on the speed boat.
Meanwhile, a traveller who crossed with the 15:20 ferry from Rosignol related that he enjoyed the ride, as it was faster, and he regarded the journey as being a safe one, as passengers were fitted with life-jackets.
He however suggested that there be three boats in operation, working in a crisscross manner from Blairmont, Rosignol and New Amsterdam,
At the New Amsterdam Stelling on Monday, scores of commuters converged in the waiting area where they were divided into batches of twenty six before they were escorted aboard the vessel, where they were fitted with life jackets.
Even though the initial trips were incident free, this reporter observed that the lone outboard engine seemed insufficient as it sputtered for quite a while on one occasion, whilst drifting  to about a hundred metres form the stelling before sailing smoothly across the river.