The Isle of Wight's much-maligned floating bridge has recorded a loss of more than £400,000 so far this year, according to the Isle of Wight Council leader.
Councillor Dave Stewart says the figures mean he has to "reluctantly" consider "whether the vessel is fit for purpose."
Speaking exclusively to Isle of Wight Radio, he confirmed the local authority will pursue legal action against its manufacturers.
Cllr Stewart says he is "disappointed" by the vessel, to say the least:
"This is on the basis that we are now proceeding with legal action. The contract was one of those that said we want it to do that, to do this, to do the other. It wasn't one of those that said it has got to be so high, although that was in the design.
"Those expectations were there and in my view, they should have been met. It was intended that it would boost our economy, provide more service to the community and the income generation is based on what we charged... disappointed will be the least. Factually, based on the figures I have in front of me, it has cost us a lot of money."
As reported last week, the council said it had started talks with the builder and designer of the bridge to seek "an appropriate remedy".
A report set to go before Scrutiny members next week stated that "if the discussions do not conclude with a satisfactory remedy for the losses suffered then it is open to the council to issue court proceedings and seek to set right the matter, including any financial loss."
Last year, a freedom of information request revealed that Floating Bridge 6 has yet to make a profit since coming into service.
According to Cllr Stewart, between January and July this year, the Cowes to East Cowes link has made an income of around £236,000.
He claims that, that - compared with an expenditure of around £662,000 - has left the council with an estimated loss of £426,000 so far this year.
Cllr Stewart said he hopes legal proceedings will "recover money". When asked if he would go as far as scrapping the vessel, he said:
"Well the first question is where do you send it to? The one that worked, which had a hole in it by the way, had come to the end of its life.
"It should have provided the community with an improved service, it should have run reliably. Everyone knows as I have experienced painfully over the last few years, it hasn't done what we expected and that's why we're going to take legal proceedings on it.
The vessel has been out of action since mid-July due to a technical fault. It is not yet known when it will return.
As Isle of Wight Radio revealed last month, the council is spending £40,000 a month on a foot passenger replacement service.
Isle of Wight Radio has approached boatbuilder's Mainstay Marine Solutions for a comment.
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