The Ro-Ro service which was not functioning for the last one-and-a-half months resumed the service on September 9. The service was disrupted after a piece of fishing net got entangled to its propeller.
“We have resumed operations on September 9 after completion of repair and trials. Subsequent to the commencement of the service, congestion on the roads were reduced. Now that the RO-RO service is in place, more container-laden trucks will start using RO-RO thereby reducing congestion further. From September 9 to 13, we transported 983 TEUs containers via waterway,” said sources in the company.
Earlier, in the wake of Kochi Metro Rail construction, the district administration had asked container lorry operators to utilize the service to the maximum so that the congestion on road could be reduced to a great extent.
The Ro-Ro barge service was introduced to facilitate the transportation of container trucks between Willingdon Island and the International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT). So far, 1.10 lakh trailers have been transported via waterways.
Though the damage of the barge had been fixed, inability to conduct service during the month of August had become a setback for the operators as ICTT Vallarpadom registered highest ever throughput in August by handling 39,003 TEUs containers.
“We could have also benefited of this achievement of ICTT, if our barge was ready for operation in August. The average number of trailer transported both ways is 3,000. In August, we could transport only 1,000,” said a top official of the company.
Lack of sufficent depth was the reason for the barge to get damaged.
“It was a piece of fishing net that damaged the barge. Various types of garbage are being deposited in the channel along with mud during monsoon. We are happy that the Inland Water ways Authority of India which owns the channel has positively responded to our request to carry out dredging,” sources added.