School pupils face disruption as Strangford Ferry affected in trade union strike over next seven days

The Department for Infrastructure@deptinfra said the disruption is ‘as a result of all out strike action by a number of trade unions’.

It has been reported by the BBC that hundreds of schoolchildren who use the Strangford Ferry face disruption over the next seven days due to strike action by ferry workers.

The service will not be operational for a week, meaning commuters will have to find an alternative means of transport.

And in a statement Alliance MLA Kellie Armstrong, on social media, said: “Strangford Lough Ferry Service

"Due to strike action there will be no ferry from 00:01 on Thursday 20 April 2023 until 23:59 on Wednesday 26 April 2023.

"Due to this industrial action, Dept for Infrastructure will not be able to provide a ferry service.

"Translink and the Education Authority have been notified of this action. Contact your child’s school if you have any questions.

"For anyone trying to get to work - it will be a long and exhausting round the Lough commute.

"What an utter, expensive mess for local residents. I’ve written to Dept for Infrastructure to outline the economic, education and community upset this loss of transport service will have on local residents.”

In their statement the DFI said while ‘contingency arrangements are in place, to limit potential impacts as much as possible, this strike action will affect many of our routine and emergency response functions’.

They said this will include – Repair of serious infrastructure defects such as manhole collapse or potholes;

Significantly reducing our capacity to respond to flood emergencies;

Significant delays in responding to calls to the flood incident line;

Prioritisation of assistance to those incidents with most impact to life and property;

Response and clear-up operation when there are incidents on the road such as oil spills or unexpected debris;

Drainage infrastructure clearing and cleansing.

See their statement here