KEY POINTS:
Was the late night stranding a one-off for Fullers? Yes and no. It is the first time Fullers is aware of passengers have been stranded overnight. Periodically, passengers are left behind when demand exceeds the ferry's capacity.
Fullers' chief executive Doug Hudson says this usually involved no more than 20 people and they were picked up by another ferry within 30 minutes. However, Stonyridge Vineyard owner Stephen White said he understood a small group had previously been left behind but had found beds for the night.
What could Fullers have done to alleviate the problem?
The ferry was Fullers' biggest and sailed with a maximum capacity 550 passengers. The skipper was aware a large number of passengers were left behind. Hudson said Fullers' duty manager requested the skipper make an additional run to pick up the stranded passengers but the skipper refused. An available alternative was to send the Devonport ferry which became free from its last run at 1.30am. This would have been a slow trip but better than no ferry at all, Hudson acknowledged. This does not appear to have been considered as an option.
What does Fullers do to assess demand?
It uses historical passenger data and tries to be aware of one-off events that may influence demand. It is part of the business to anticipate loadings. We carry four million people a year and we do get it right almost all of the time. We have never had a spare boat crewed up sitting awaiting a potential overload.
We have back up boats rostered but our rosters are done three weeks in advance. We try to understand what is happening in the market three weeks ahead. In this case, we knew about the dance party at Stonyridge Vineyard. Because tickets can also be bought for the party at the gates, we never know quite how many are going to the party.
And this weekend there were weddings and other functions on. But we never know how many are going to what function or how many intend to stay the night on the Island, how many are likely to return on the 10.15pm sailing and how many on the last scheduled departure at 12.30am. We have to try to pick it.
A ferry service is not like an airline where a certain number of seats are sold for a particular departure. If we sell 2000 tickets today we don't know if those people are going to come back today or next week. As it was, we rostered on our biggest boat and it wasn't enough. Because rosters are done in advance it is difficult to put on a back-up ferry and crew at short notice.
What is Fullers doing to ensure there is no repeat?
As part of trying to improve its planning, Fullers last week met Waiheke police and entertainment interests to discuss ways of improving information flow about likely ferry demand. Fullers is looking at the possibility of parking an additional ferry and crew at Matiatia on nights when one-off events may result in particularly heavy demand. The additional cost could be recovered by selling a premium-priced boarding pass for last boat off the island.
Does Fullers have a culture problem?
The refusal of the skipper to do an additional run and the public comment of its operations manager "When most of the people choose to come back on the last sailing it makes it a little difficult" may indicate that there is an issue.
But Fullers is credited including by Mike Lee with having generally run an excellent Waiheke service. Hudson says a skipper had never previously refused a request to sail for any reason other than safety concerns. The company was further investigating the skipper's refusal.
Is Fullers a monopoly?
Fullers is the dominant ferry company in Auckland. It is the operator on six of the nine routes on the Waitemata Harbour. A rival operator could register a competing service so long as the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) deems it doesn't create undue congestion. The main deterrents to rival operations is prohibitive start-up costs (large fast ferries cost $4 million-plus and three may be needed to adequately service a route such as Auckland-Waiheke).
Does Fullers have enough boats to keep its services up to scratch?
A lack of significant investment in new ferries since 1998 may mean Fullers faces capacity and maintain issues. George Hudson, who in 2001 received an Order of Merit of New Zealand for his vision in the ferry and tourism industry, developed the Waiheke ferry service that developed into Fullers. He did this without public funding and at considerable risk, investing heavily in multi-hulled, aluminium fast ferries.
Under the Hudson family direction, the Waiheke ferry service was developed from three return runs a day to 20, opening the way for the rapid development that has ensued on the island. The ferry service made Waiheke a viable place to live for city workers.
No new boats were bought during the ownership of Scottish company Stagecoach, an international bus company new to the ferry industry. Stagecoach bought the ferry operation with the Auckland region's biggest bus operation in 1998. It sold these businesses to Infratil in November 2005.
Lee is concerned Fullers may be currently near operating capacity because of insufficient investment. Last November, some ferry services were disrupted when five Fullers' ferries required maintenance at the same time.
Since Infratil took ownership, a new ferry was bought (last November) and Fullers' operations manager Ian Greenslade said a fleet review is planned.
How much public money does Fullers get to provide a ferry service to Waiheke?
None. The Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) provides a subsidy of $300,000 to bus operators on Waiheke Island. These bus services connect with ferry sailings.
How do Auckland subsidies for ferries compare with Sydney?
Very little public funding is provided for ferry services in Auckland compared with Sydney, where commuter ferries survive on subsidies. Auckland has concentrated on buses as its primary mode of public transport and, belatedly, trains, whereas Sydney has focused on all three.
How much money do Auckland local authorities invest in ferry services?
ARTA, a subsidiary of the ARC, last financial year provided a subsidy totalling $2.6 million for ferry operations servicing Gulf Harbour, Pine Harbour, West Harbour, Half Moon Bay, Birkenhead/Northcote Point and Bayswater. Fullers run the latter three and received almost $2 million of that subsidy. Fullers' busiest routes Devonport, Waiheke and Stanley Bay do not receive a subsidy. Subsidies for buses totalled $53 million while rail subsides came to $40 million.
What is planned for future ferry services?
Plans for development of Auckland's passenger transport during the next 10 years include introducing ferry services and terminals at Takapuna, Browns Bay, Te Atatu and Hobsonville. Open bays such as Takapuna and Browns Bay are likely to require expensive construction, including storm breaks to make docking safe during rough weather. An ARTA report outlining the plan estimated a cost of $113 million for ferry service upgrades and additions, excluding land acquisition.
Lee has said he will look at options to punish Fullers for leaving passengers stranded. What can he do?
Very little. Lee plans to seek advice but he was unaware of any penalties the ARC or ARTA could apply because they have no contract with Fullers for the Waiheke service. Therefore Fullers has no obligation to those authorities. Lee acknowledges the public caning he gave the company may be the only weapon in his armoury.
