Ferry route closure may force pupils into long commute on buses
Long slog to school looms as boat firm to scrap Mui Wo-DB service, citing costs
The Transport Department is looking for a ferry operator to take over services between Mui Wo and Discovery Bay so 40 students do not have to spend triple the time they currently take to go to school by catching a bus when the ferry operator closes the route in November.
But Ken Wong Hon-kuen, director of Peng Chau Kaito, the ferry operator, said the department has no chance of finding another operator to take over.
Wong said his firm would stop services on the route due to extra costs linked to the Marine Department's new measures to ensure safety at sea. Those measures are to be introduced in the hope of avoiding a tragedy like the Lamma ferry disaster that took place last October.
The measures mandate the installation of automatic identification systems and that vessels carrying more than 100 passengers have a lookout on the bridge at night and in reduced visibility.
"My company's licence actually expired in August," Wong said. "The department invited tenders to take over from me, but no one was interested.
"Then the department asked if I wanted to operate the route for a few more months because the Mui Wo children need the ferries to go to school in Discovery Bay. My licence was then extended."