Fears of a further ferry crisis as outlying island commuters returned to work after the Easter break yesterday seem to have been averted. After days of chaos the situation may now be finally settling down. But further potential problems lie ahead, with next week's return to school imposing a further burden on peak-hour services.
On Peng Chau, the island which has seen the most complaints over the past few days, some residents are talking about moving out. Property transactions have fallen through.
Some commuters want to break their leases to avoid being forced to rely on inadequate ferry schedules. Others have reportedly resorted to using illegal services run by private operators, that have sprung up to fill the vacuum created by the weekend troubles.
The only ones who do not seem to be complaining are those living on Lamma. After years of enduring appalling services on dirty and dilapidated vessels, they are finally rid of Hongkong & Yaumati Ferry Company.
The Lamma routes were the only major outlying island services to change hands as part of last week's shake-up. Residents are already reaping the benefits of the cleaner and more modern vessels used by the new operator.
When the Government decided to award most other routes back to the same ferry company in last November's tendering exercise, there were warnings that this would only be likely to lead to more complaints and problems.
