As the ferry service from Ettalong and Wagstaffe to Palm Beach continues to be diverted to Patonga, the war of words over the dredging of Ettalong channel is heating up.
A spokesperson for Transport Minister Jo Haylen has hit back at comments made by Member for Terrigal Adam Crouch, who called out the State Government for its “lack of action and response” regarding the dredging of the channel, with shifting sandbars and shallow operating depths forcing Fantasea Palm Beach Ferries to announce an indefinite diversion of services on June 13.
Crouch said management of the channel was taken over by the State Government in 2021, with $6.2M in funding provided for dredging.
But a spokesperson for Minister Haylen has placed the ball firmly back in Crouch’s court, saying the $6.2M in funding allocated by the previous government was for dredging projects across the entire state.
“Adam Crouch was serving as the Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast in the former Liberal Government less than 100 days ago,” the spokesperson said.
“Dredging at Ettalong was Mr Crouch’s responsibility and he let it build up.
“When the Minns Labor Government came into office, there was no planning approval for this vital dredging, so we’re working quickly to address this issue that we inherited.
“Without planning approval, projects like this cannot proceed.
“The new government is investigating alternative arrangements to minimise the impacts on commuters inconvenienced by the previous government’s lack of action and is looking to secure planning approval and begin work on restoring the ferry service as quickly as possible.”
Meanwhile, Fantasea has promised on its Facebook page to re-evaluate the condition of the channel weekly until it deems it safe to resume the Ettalong/Wagstaffe service.
Source:
Office of Transport Minister Jo Haylen
no relief for Wagstaffe residents no extra free buses no ferry to Ettalong and will be like this for months government couldn’t run a bath state or federal what a joke