PS-Madeira submitted to the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Madeira a proposal to open an international public tender for the concession of maritime transport services by ferry ship between Madeira and the continental territory, for 5 years, extendable up to 10 years.
Today, in the party’s press release, Paulo Cafôfo argues that “the reactivation of the maritime connection between Madeira and the Mainland throughout the year is crucial for boosting the regional economy and for the mobility of residents in our Region”.
According to the president of the PS-M, “this is a demand from Madeirans and Porto-Santenses, who have the right to choose the way they wish to travel to the Continent, by air or by sea, and territorial cohesion must be guaranteed in both ways.”
Paulo Cafôfo also recalls that “Madeira has a high degree of external dependence, importing a large part of what it consumes, so the reactivation of this maritime connection via ferry would bring greater speed and more competitive prices in terms of the transport of goods and raw materials”.
For the socialist parliamentary leader, “it is not understandable how the Regional Government pushes this decision of such importance for our companies and our citizens to the Republic, which in fact has been a demand of Madeirans and Porto-Santenses since 2019, date in which the Madeira Navigation Company stopped carrying out this maritime connection activity between the Region and the Continent”.
In the proposal presented, the PS-M parliamentary group calls for dialogue with the Government of the Republic, with the aim of guaranteeing all operational and logistical conditions for the viability of this maritime connection with ports on mainland territory.
This maritime transport line between Madeira and the mainland (port of Portimão) for passengers and round cargo was operated between 2008 and 2012 by Naviera Armas. In 2018 and 2019, the Empresa de Navegação Madeiran was awarded a public concession for maritime transport of passengers and vehicles, between Madeira and the Continental Territory, but without transported cargo. No new competitive procedure has been initiated by the Regional Government to date.
The return of the ‘ferry’ line is a commitment included in the PS-M’s electoral program for the Regional Legislatures, which has now taken shape in a draft resolution presented as one of the priorities by the parliamentary group.