Online booking for ferries from October 1 – Edghill announces

Beginning from the month of October, commuters using Guyana’s ferry services would simply be able to book their tickets online, rather than waiting for hours prior to their departure to secure a spot.

This development has been announced by Public Works Minister Juan Edghill, earlier this week at the parliamentary sitting.
“Nobody has to go there to line up and get a number to board. You’d be able to book, you pay and you know. The advisory board of the Transport and Harbours Department is working very hard for the implementation of online booking,” he said.
The Transport and Harbours Department would publish the scheduled trips departing from the Parika Stelling to places like Supenaam and Bartica.
There have been complaints from commuters about the hours of waiting just to secure a spot for their vehicles. Due to the large volume of passengers traversing daily, the Minister explained that authorities would facilitate additional trips per day, to ensure that people get to their destinations.

“Essequibians have rice that they have to get to millers, and they have produce that have to get to markets. We facilitate that to ensure we support what the Ministry of Agriculture is doing,” he said.
For 2022, the Public Works Ministry has facilitated dry docking for the MV Barima, MV Kimbia and MV Malali. The MV Kanawan and MV Sabanto which traverse the Parika-Supenaam route were successfully sent into drydocking and returned to operation.
“In seven months, five vessels in and out of drydock is history for the Transport and Harbours Department. The commitment that we have now from the Transport and Harbours Department is that we have to maintain a proper schedule to ensure that when these vessels go into dry dock, we don’t meet some of the challenges we had,” the Public Works Minister noted.
In the supplementary funding approved on Monday for Government to continue its work, $131 million was set aside for the rehabilitation of ferry vessels. Guyana’s maritime operations would soon get a boost with the introduction of the spanking new MV Ma Lisha. The US$12.7 vessel is built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd in India. It is 69.55 metres long, with a 13.5-metre beam. Designed to traverse the conditions from Georgetown to the North West District (NWD), it will cut travel time by 50 per cent, with a speed of 15 knots and 500 nautical miles’ endurance. It has a 250-tonne cargo capacity, with a six-tonne capacity crane, and will be powered by two engines. Passenger capacity is 294 persons, inclusive of crew members.
Works will be carried out at Kingston, Port Kaituma, Mabaruma, and Morawhanna stellings to accommodate this vessel. (G12)