Doeksen operates the boats going to and from Vlieland and Terschelling
Translated by Thomas Ansell
As more and more people choose to stay in the Netherlands for their summer holidays, so ferry operators in the North have to deal with more and more people going to the Wadden Islands. Terschelling and Vlieland are two of the most popular places for sun-worshippers, and can only be reached by sea- with ferries operated by Rederij Doeksen leaving from Harlingen in Friesland.
All those boarding a Doeksen ferry must wear a face-mask, however with the boats getting fuller and fuller it is getting more and more difficult for staff to enforce this, so the company is bringing in safety marshals to help, reports the Omrop Fryslân.
The burden of enforcing the rules earlier fell on Doeksen staff, however that had become too difficult. Director Paul Melles said: “We have noticed that it’s difficult for our staff, and so we have brought in extra people for surveillance and enforcement”.
The new staff are being provided by a private security company- a sector that has also suffered a Coronavirus-related downturn with fewer festivals and public events due to the Coronavirus regulations and public health concerns.
Melles says that some people on-board still ignore the rules: “but for public transport it really is important that people wear face masks, because we can’t maintain a 1.5-metre social distance on board.” The Veiligheidsregio Fryslân public health body is also monitoring face-mask wearing on public transport. Those that continue to refuse to wear a mask will be handled by the police.
Image via Dieter Ludwig Scharnagl on Pixabay . License here.
