‘This is for the public’ – The Gozo Channel will be locking ferry’s garage doors from now on
We all know that feeling after a long, fun filled Gozo weekend, driving up the shaky platform onto the ferry to get back home. Exhausted, and not up for social interaction, you stay in the car for the 20-minute trip, or better yet, you fall asleep and take the time to have a much-needed nap.
Did you know that this is actually illegal?
In fact, Gozo Channel has just taken the decision to lock the garage doors from now on.
Sammy Grech, the company’s liaison officer, expressed in comments to The Times of Malta that “this is for the public” and the safety of passengers. Under EU regulations, passengers are not allowed to stay in the garages of vessels whilst the voyage is underway. Sammy expressed that all it takes is one car to catch fire for someone to get caught up in the smoke.
Gozo Channel is implementing these safety and maintenance measures as a last resort, to stop people from staying in the garage section of the ship. This comes after carrying out a drill with the Civil Protection Department, to test whether someone trapped in the bottom section of the ferry would be able to find their way out, should a fire break out during the trip. After testing it out under simulated conditions, Sammy confirmed that there is no way anyone would be able to get out and says “you will not see anyone if they get trapped down there.”
Do you usually stay in your car when crossing?