Navigarda Responds to Controversy Over Ferry Service During Landslide Emergency
“Speculation by a government entity on the state of emergency and citizens’ distress.” The accusation launched by the economic operators prompted Ing. Marcello Coppola, director of Navigarda, to respond.
“The service is what has been requested by the Municipalities affected by the landslide, but the municipalities are unable to mediate the needs of the population and continue to request schedule changes that oppose each other,” writes Coppola, who adds, “the quality of the service is beyond question, with two ferries available offering 40 weekday trips and 38 holiday trips.”
Details about the transportation service and recent events
The transportation service was also activated coinciding with the Christmas holidays and during the season dedicated to ship maintenance. The recent malfunction? “It has been exaggerated.”
There is little to say about the fares, which “are established by the Ministry of Transport.” For Coppola, “the tension among the commercial operators in the area is understandable, and Navigarda has always tried to accommodate the expressed needs.”
“This ongoing and unnecessary controversy is difficult to understand and benefits no one.” The director would prefer not to discuss it, but the controversy, which he believes is unjustified, prompts him to describe what happened on the evening of December 22, right after the Rocchetta landslide: “They called me home in the evening, after office hours.
I alerted my collaborators and activated the service overnight. By 5 a.m. the next morning, a ferry departed from Maderno and by 7 a.m. it reached Limone. When the ship broke down on New Year’s Eve, we worked all night to repair it.
We are not the Civil Protection, but we did not want to leave a municipality in Gardesana isolated: that’s why we intervened immediately. It should also be noted that, quite often, our ferries travel empty or nearly empty.”
Mayor’s position and fare details
The mayor of Limone, Battista Martinelli, attempts a mediating tone, saying: “The fact that Navigarda applies its fares is justified by the expenses it undoubtedly has to bear.”
“An intervention at the regional level could be considered, requesting the study of the possibility of lowering the prices. However, I don’t think now is the time for controversy. At least, that is the stance of the Limone Municipal Council.”
The cost of a one-way ferry trip from Limone to Riva is 13,500 lire for a standard vehicle (length 4.5 meters) with an driver, and 4,500 lire per person.
The subscription for employees, workers, teachers, and students is 54,000 lire per month. b.f.