Anger as Bristol ferries and boat dwellers to be hit with huge hike in fees

A huge hike in fees and charges for Bristol’s harbour will hit ferries and boat dwellers from April.

The harbour master said the fees were needed to upgrade facilities around the city’s docks, but many of the increases are well above inflation, with several at least doubling.

Fees to use the harbour include for mooring on pontoons, operating ferry services, using barges and tugs, and showering at the Baltic Wharf leisure centre. These will be increased in April at the start of the new financial year, under new plans from Bristol City Council.

Fees are then set to increase again in April next year by the rate of inflation plus an extra 5 per cent. According to the harbour master, fees in Bristol’s docks are much less than elsewhere in the South West.

But local politicians are warning this could hammer boat and ferry users who are struggling financially.

Lifting Redcliffe Bridge will increase in cost from £350.95 to £500 – photo: Bristol City Council

Tony Nichols, the harbour master, said: “The current schedule of fees and charges applied are in some cases extremely low when benchmarked against other harbour authorities in the South West.

To allow the harbour to become financially self-sufficient and invest in the future of the harbour, a review of fees and charges was required.

“A benefit of becoming financially self-sufficient is that operations and facilities will be improved, and these improvements will be evident for service users and visitors to the city docks.

The harbour authority will be undergoing a series of engagement opportunities with user groups to notify them of the proposed changes.”

Nichols detailed the changes to fees and charges in a recent cabinet report, which gave a full breakdown of current charges and what they will be from April. The council’s cabinet is expected to sign off the changes on Tuesday, February 24.

Pontoon mooring fees will increase from £188.20 to £250 during the summer, and from £158.10 to £175 during the winter. New fees will be introduced of £100 for electric supply, and £325 for annual residential mooring. All of these fees are charged per metre.

Ferries will see their fees double, with annual operating charges per boat increasing from £503.30 to £1,000; and small boats with 12 passengers or fewer increasing from £251.45 to £500. A new charge will also be introduced of 20p per passenger per trip.

Lifting Redcliffe Bridge will increase in cost from £350.95 to £500, with new £50 fees introduced for commercial boats to swing the Prince Street Bridge, Plimsoll Bridge and Junction Bridge.

Other fee increases include for barges, short-term moorings, and a whopping 790 per cent hike for annual tug licences going from £280.85 to £2,500.

Stephen Williams, former MP and Liberal Democrat candidate in the upcoming by-election for Hotwells and Harbourside, tweeted: “The Labour-controlled council is about to slap exorbitant new charges on [ferries], smashing their businesses. Madness, which I will resist.”

Ani Stafford-Townsend, representing the Central ward, added: “There has been no consultation, no engagement and no equalities impact assessment on what it means for those whose lives depend on the harbour.”

Alex Seabrook is a local democracy reporter for Bristol

Main photo: Martin Booth

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