It is without any doubt a real pleasure to be at Mgarr or Cirkewwa harbour and watch brand new, purposely-built Gozo Channel ferries coming in and out of the harbour.

It is also satisfying to note the progress being made on the construction of the new ferry terminals both at Mgarr and Cirkewwa.

It is true that both the three new ferries and the terminals were planned in 1996 to be in operation by 1999 - a four-year delay to the detriment and inconvenience of millions of passengers.

It is also a known fact that the cost involved came to more than double the amount originally planned, mostly due to keeping Malta Shipbuilding going.

We can easily say that Gozo Channel have now got the means and necessary ferries to operate an efficient service. The millions of passengers and the thousands of vehicle owners who made use of this service during the past summer months can easily vouch for this.

As a service provider it is not an easy task for Gozo Channel to keep each and every passenger fully satisfied with all its services. It is only fair to thank and congratulate Gozo Channel and each member of staff for a job well done.

It is a real pity that after so much capital and effort involved, Gozo Channel Company is not rewarded with a decent profit or, at least, not finishing off with a reported loss of about Lm800,000 in its last financial year.

I am sure that all parties involved are very preoccupied with this problem and their aim is for the company to retain its viability while maintaining the expected service.

Unfortunately, the management opted for the easiest solution to the detriment of the island of Gozo, besides the tourism industry, to the Maltese Islands as a whole and, in the long term, to Gozo Channel Company itself. This was done by cancelling the:

i. 12.30 a.m. and 2 a.m. trips from Gozo and the 1 a.m. and the 2.30 a.m. trips from Malta, which were in operation on Saturdays and Sundays only in the same period in the 30.09.03 - 29.06.03 timetable, replacing these two trips by a 12.15 a.m. from Gozo and 1 a.m. from Malta everyday - not just weekends as before.

ii. Two evening trips - leaving no ferry service from 7.16 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. and from 9.31 p.m. to 12.15 a.m. and from Cirkewwa there is no service between 8.01 p.m. and 10.15 p.m. and from 10.16 p.m. to 1.00 a.m.

Besides the above, there is no ferry service operating from Gozo between 12.15 a.m. and 5.15 a.m. and from Cirkewwa from 1 a.m. up to 6 a.m.

This clearly shows that every Maltese citizen either living in Gozo or living in Malta would be deprived of attending a simple do (a wedding reception) whether in Malta or in Gozo. Besides this, anyone staying in Gozo would not be able to make use of any night trips unless he is ready to wait from 1 a.m. up to 6 a.m. at Cirkewwa or to spend a night in Malta incurring extra transport expenses besides accommodation in Malta.

Leaving the social aspect aside, anyone arriving at Malta International Airport after midnight will have to spend a night in Malta - meaning extra expenses - a taxi from the airport to the hotel in Malta and another taxi from the hotel in Malta to the ferry in the morning, instead of just one taxi from the airport to the ferry. A tourist booked on a week's visit to Gozo will finish off with extra expenses and just spending six days instead of seven days in Gozo as booked. This would be further reduced by another day if the departure time from Luqa airport is before 6.30 a.m.

It is a well known fact that occupancy in Gozo hotels in the winter and mid-season is alarmingly low even when compared with those in Malta.

The Malta Tourism Authority is doing its best to extend the peak season and it can be said that tourist arrivals have not decreased due to the fact that the conference and incentive business is on the increase. Cruise liner business has also increased. Unfortunately, although thousands of liri are spent every year to market this new business, Gozo does not benefit from it or if it does, it is not the accommodation sector that benefits.

Having full knowledge of the difficult situation which the Gozo leisure industry faces, most operators in this field are investing in better amenities and offering more incentives to attract visitors during this period - to extend the peak season. This is done to diminish the heavy losses which any operator, whose business depends on seasonality, faces during the low or, even to a smaller degree, the mid-season.

It is a fact that no amount of measures taken or cancellation of trips will lead to a successful operation unless this is run in an efficient, productive and accountable manner.

As the Gozo Tourism Association rightly said, unless Gozo is easily accessible day and night all year round, the viability of operating and, even more, of investing in the leisure industry in Gozo is non-existent.

Gozo Channel is the life link to Gozo and, as such, should contribute to the viability of this industry.

This can be done:

i. By having just one ferry timetable showing both winter and summer schedules, distributed well in advance. This will surely help operators in this industry who plan their programmes well in advance - even by one year. This should have savings in printing cost especially if this is sponsored by a third party.

ii. The present ticketing system with just one return ticket purchased from Gozo should be retained. The running cost of operating another booking office at Cirkewwa would surely cost in excess of Lm30,000 annually. Ticketing machines can also be posted on the ferries.

iii. Man power - staff cost. Most companies whose business depends heavily on seasonality make use of seasonal part-time workers in the peak season while keeping manpower as low as possible during the low season - hoteliers and Air Malta, among others, do this.

iv. Fares should not cost the same in the peak season - August 15 - as in the middle of January. This must be established according to supply and demand.

v. With the increase in capacity with the new ferries taking more vehicles, the frequency of ferry crossings at certain times can be every hour instead of the present three quarters of an hour. Each trip would be even fuller - less wastage.

vi. The running cost of a ferry crossing is the same whether it is full or half full. Quantity is the name of the game. This can only be successful by ensuring to advertise Gozo and to make sure that Gozo is easily accessible day and night all the year round - in short to offer a reliable service.

vii. The summer timetable should run between April 1 and October 31, thus extending the peak season, while the winter timetable should be from November 1 and March 31.

A good service - winter or summer - will surely help to stop having ferries lying idle at Mgarr.

Having taken note that Gozo Channel must curb its losses hereunder please find my proposal operating the same number of trips - 21 trips as the timetable just issued by Gozo Channel.

This would cover from November 1, 2003 up to March 30, 2004 and all arrivals and departures day and night.

From Mgarr From Cirkewwa 02.00 00.30 05.00 02.45 06.00 05.45 06.45 06.45 07.30 07.30 08.15 08.15 09.00 09.00 09.45 09.45 10.45 10.30 11.45 11.30 12.45 12.30 13.45 13.30 14.45 14.30 15.45 15.30 16.45 16.30 17.45 17.30 18.45 18.30 19.45 19.30 20.45 20.30 22.15 21.30 23.45 23.00

I sincerely hope that Gozo Channel will reconsider its decision for the interest of everybody involved.

Mr Borg is chairman and managing director of Victor J. Borg Enterprises Ltd.