The Cowes Floating Bridge has been pulled from service this morning (Tuesday) due to a mechanical failure.
The troubled Floating Bridge No.6 has once again been hit with a technical gremlin, although the Isle of Wight Council has not expanded on the cause.
Island Echo is told that a prow hinge has broke at the West end – again.
A launch for foot passengers is due to come into service shortly, operated by the Jenny boat.
It is unknown when the floating bridge will be back in action. It is currently docked on the Cowes side of the River Medina.
UPDATE @ 13:00 – A launch service continues this afternoon, with the Isle of Wight Council confirming that the last crossing will operate at 23:00 tonight.
Sources say that the floating bridge is likely to be out of action today and possibly tomorrow (Wednesday) too.
UPDATE @ 16:20 – The Isle of Wight Council have confirmed that the floating bridge will remain out of action for the rest of today and into tomorrow.
A replacement foot passenger launch will operate from 04:00 on Wednesday morning up until 23:00.
Engineers are continuing to investigate an issue with the Floating Bridge ramp/prow assembly.
Been here 20 mins waiting to get accross,, 1 poxy little boat and 120 people waiting…..
Not again! Not fit for purpose – should have been sent back in the first week it arrived.
maybe someone knows total cost to date its got to be over 7million
Stood at East Cowes for 90mins this morning before boat started . Then tried to charge me for the pleasure . I just walked on by bl***y nerve .
We have travelled to the moon and back but don’t seem to be able to cross the river media with a reliable service
During the war, engineers managed to construct bridges over rives, whilst under enemy fire, and without computer aided design and all the new technology we have at our disposal today.
Yet the council cannot create a cost effective link across a small river, NOR can it do so on the undercliff road, where literally a child could toss a stone from one side of the damaged portion to the other.
A few lorry loads of Mr Bennets crushed concrete would sort the latter issue for a few hundred pounds.
Everything now has to be such an unnecessary fuss.
Perhaps Cllr Ward would like to make a comment in regard of the Council’s plans to bring the reliability of the floating bridge up to that demonstrated for so many years by its predecessor?
If the legal team will allow it some indication of who will be paying for the work and what (if any) compensation is being sought would be nice too.
Pathetic disregard for the people that supply the money to the county hall baffoons.
I also noticed some people were paying and some were not…. Got a bloody cheek asking for anything after loads of people late for work and kids were late for school.
I’m so shocked
You will be when your council tax rises to pay for the endless repairs and traffic management, for THEIR mismanagement.
No wonder they are upping the Ryde pier toll by 100%
Vote them out next time.
Really!
Keep moaning, and keep paying your council tax. Very british (lower case on the british not a mistake)
So we are suppose to use this heap of shit when the roadworks are going on at st Mary’s ha ha ha it’s a joke council need a kick up the back side
Shocking state of affairs
piece of shit
What an absolute waste of time and money. I don’t understand the logic of today’s world, the decisions that are made and regretted afterwards, but this so called floating bridge is a farce. We the people never had a say and we shall never ever own or see the old floating bridge ever again. I think it’s just so sad that the decisions made and the wasted amount of money, could of been used to better people in the community, rather than go on something that never worked in the first place. Who are the Councillors responsible for this mess? Why try to fix something, when the original wasn’t broken in the first place? Beggars belief. The old floating bridge was sold, to pay for this one or at the very least traded in and probably scrapped now? I have not and will never go on this as I said in my last posting a few months ago, I’d rather drive round.