No more endless waits for a taxi at the dock of es Botafoc, or the suffocating walks to Ibiza town at noon under the July sun. The bus transport authorized by the Balearic Port Authority that connects the dock of Botafoc with the Formentera ferry station came into service yesterday to the consolation of those who disembarked from the ferry.
Transport line should be extended throught the year
Although in principle the transport line comes back into service to the relief of all, occasional vacationers, regular visitors and residents, the truth is that it is only active in high season. The shuttle bus between the dock of es Botafoc and the port of Ibiza, operated by Sagalés, is expected to make its last trip of the year on October 31st, practically together with the closing of the nightclubs.
Carmen, a visitor who travels frequently to the island, advocates extending the transport service during the rest of the year. This is what she says while waiting with her daughter to take the bus. If the saying goes that he who has a friend has a treasure, in Ibiza the phrase takes on another meaning. Carmen has relatives on the island and if they can pick her up she is spared the suffering of the tourists who arrive wanting to see Ibiza and being abandoned to their fate. “Normally the family comes to pick me up, but today they are all working”, she explains in the small queue of passengers, where about twenty people were waiting for the trip.
Her opinion about the situation is that of a resident angry about the image of the island offered to tourists. “A lot of tourists come to Ibiza, and this is a public transport service. I think it’s fantastic that the bus has been put in place, but they should leave it all year round. Ibiza is a tourist island, and the image we give is a bit disappointing,” she says.
Victor, Tábata and Jelle, a group of three friends, also arrive by boat. They feel lucky to discover a sign announcing that the new bus will be in service from today [yesterday], August 1st. In Victor’s case, he has already experienced the transportation difficulties encountered by tourists on their arrival on the island. “When I came here some time ago with my mother, we had to walk for 40 minutes”, explains this young man.
This group of friends thinks that the bus service is late. “It is better that they have put it in” than that there is no bus, they concede, “but they should have done it in May, or even from Easter and until the end of the season“, says Tábata, who does not consider it necessary to extend the transport service to the rest of the year however, given the sharp drop in demand that is registered with the end of the season.
For the full article, please visit Diario de Ibiza website here.