PLEASE READ THIS IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Please find below some information we have received from a former employee of Sydney Ferries/Harbour City Ferries over the weekend: 1. Common ownership of Harbour City Ferries (HCF), Sydney Fast Ferries and Sealink Travel Group/Captain Cook Cruises: all 3 are owned by the same parent/holding company or a company director has interests in all 3, meaning that Manly Fast Ferry is in fact the only independent operator involved in the tender for the Manly Fast ferries route. 2. Apparently the decision around the fast ferry tender has already been made and the ‘winner’ is known already amongst HCF employees. This would possibly explain the fact that whilst we have been down at Manly Wharf during the morning peak and the HCF and Sydney Fast Ferries staff have asked for a copy of our flyer, they have laughed and sniggered upon reading it, showing nothing but contempt towards us. One of our members also noticed that one of the SFF employees was wearing a HCF uniform when they caught the slow ferry mid-morning last week. 3. Since the introduction of the Opal card (whereby you can travel on any number of bus or train trips within an hour, which then still only count as one trip) on the Manly Ferry, travel costs for commuters have risen significantly and the maximum trip fee is charged, despite the fact that the trip is 30 minutes. All the reports show that commuters have left the government controlled Manly Ferry in droves, favouring the privately owned fast ferries, for their frequency, speed, efficiency, comfort and reasonable cost, albeit it for a much shorter trip. By keeping the one fast ferry operator and the Manly Ferry under the same operator (HCF or their parent company), commuters are forced back onto the slow boat and/or the government ultimately regains control of both the fast and slow boats under the tender process. Thus, we have no choice and this is an absolute monopoly if both the fast ferry and slow ferry are operated by the same company. Furthermore, there is an enormous amount of suspicion amongst fast ferry commuters, locals and residents regarding the role that the unions (particularly MUA) have to play in all of this and whether there has been a deal struck between the NSW State Government/TfNSW and the unions. This seems to make sense, as if you remember, a few years ago, we were all going to and from work on the fast ferry, only to have to load and unload amongst a sea of MUA members, with placards, yelling abuse and even spitting on commuters who chose to use the fast ferry for their daily commute. We endured this for just under a week, before one morning, we arrived at Manly Wharf and the union members, their placards and their abuse had suddenly disappeared overnight. If this is the case, all of this information we have received is concerning to say the least. We have written to Mike Baird this morning asking for some clarification around these points and will share any information we receive with you, as it comes to hand, on this page
Posted on: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 01:10:48 +0000