Can the Isle of Wight Council step in to help Islanders struggling to use Wightlink due to the ferry firm’s cash ban?
That was the question councillors were asking at a meeting last night (Thursday).
Since the start of the Covid pandemic, the cross-Solent operator stopped taking cash. to protect its customers and staff from the spread of the virus.
Now, nearly two and a half years later, the business is still running on card payments only — an issue raised by several disgruntled residents who would like to pay at the terminal using cash.
You can pay online using PayPal, in terminals using card and smart pay features on phones and other devices as well as through Wightlink’s call centre where debit and credit cards are accepted.
Cllr Warren Drew, representative for Ryde South East, asked yesterday (Thursday) whether the council could do more to address the accessibility issue, in light of the authority’s own inclusive digital strategy.
Speaking at the policy and scrutiny committee for neighbourhoods and regeneration, Cllr Drew said it was something the council could address, being more robust in supporting the rights of residents.
He questioned whether the council needed to look at the implications of the Equality Act.
Deputy leader of the council, Cllr Ian Stephens said the council took pride in the relationships they have with ferry companies, the council was not 100 per cent comfortable with some of the decisions made.
He said cabinet members would make sure Island residents and businesses would not be disadvantaged.
The council’s regeneration director, Chris Ashman, said the pandemic had been helpful in the last few years in building relationships but also exposed challenges.
He told the committee while the authority does not have the authority to tell the ferry operators what to do, they can use their influence to help them, through collaboration, to get the balance right.
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