Raymond Island residents have certainty over the Raymond Island Ferry service after East Gippsland Shire Council adopted guiding principles and definitions that set out standards for the ferry service at its May meeting.
Approximately 384,500 vehicles and 256,540 pedestrians use the ferry each year.
The guiding principles and definitions of services in the 'Development of a Level of Services Agreement for the Operation and Minor Maintenance of the Raymond Island Ferry' report will be used as the basis for a Level of Service Statement.
Some of the report's recommendations will be considered as part of the draft budget 2020-21 process.
The report was developed to help users understand the services that will be provided and prevent 'service creep' where services are increased, at a cost, and are then viewed as the usual standard of service.
The report was prepared in consultation with a reference group made up of ferry users and covers regular ferry operation and planned outages.
Mayor Cr John White said the report was an important piece of work that contained a wealth of information.
"This will give Council, the community and our ferry contractors a greater understanding of how the ferry will operate and be managed into the future. It also gives residents certainty about access to their homes.
"I'd like to acknowledge the work of the user reference group for their valuable input on this project," Cr White said.
In order to understand what a reasonable level of service would be, the report compares the Raymond Island Ferry to other similar ferry services across Australia.
"Of course, with any task like this, a range of factors need to be taken into account. This report covered the effectiveness and efficiency of ferry services, as well as financial and community considerations," Cr White said.
The Level of Service Statement will be published by July.
