The announcement that the last crossing of the Portaferry - Strangford ferry each day has been axed is “another blow to an area which has been let down by the council and the Executive”, according to NI Conservatives’ economy spokesman, Johnny Andrews.
“The 10.30pm sailing from Strangford and the 10.45pm sailing from Portaferry will be stopped, according to TransportNI, which is terrible news for the local hospitality industry in particular”, Johnny explained. “This is another blow for Portaferry and the Strangford Peninsula, which have been neglected for far too long by the local council and by their MLAs. Just last month the Portaferry Hotel closed, without warning and the town has also clearly been suffering because of the closure of its aquarium.”
“As Exploris is set to reopen following its refurbishment and with the PORTICO arts and heritage centre almost finished, an enhanced ferry service is critical to tourism in the area. Both the Ards and North Down Borough Council and the Executive should be doing everything they can to improve transport links for the peninsula, in order to improve the local economy. Instead this new announcement emphasises the lack of vision shown by politicians who have failed the area and a council which has failed to implement a commercial approach to local government.”