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Amherst Island service scrutinized By Rob Tripp Whig-Standard Staff Writer NTARIO'S TRANSPORTATION MINIS- ter has ordered an audit of Loyal- ist Township's Amherst Island ferry operations after months of agitation by concerned islanders "It's called a compliance audit .to ensure that they're in compliance with the service agree- ment," said Jamie . Rilett, director of , communications ' for the minister, " Donna Cansfield. The ferry is oper- ated by the town 5 h i p u n d e r a n agreement with t" . 1,, theprovince, ' ' J ' . which pays rough» CA NSF'ELD ly 90 per cent of the annual cost. The township collects to cover the balance e agreement provides that the minister can order an audit at any time. "She asked the ministry officials to invoke that privilege and look at the books," Rilett said in an interview yes- terday. The township announced last year that it might hike fares this year by as much as 30 per cent and impose a $100 . per household tax to cover mounting losses. The announcement sparked outcry from islanders who rely on the service as their lifeline to the main- land. E Rilett said a number of factors con- ;tributed to the decision to conduct an audit. ' "The municipality was asking for a [funding] increase and then said We don't need it and so the minister said let's just get a complete picture of what's going on," he said. Rilett said concerns raised by citi- zens also were a factor. He said a re- quest for proposals from private au-- . diting firms will be released within a few weeks. It is expected to take sever- >nths before the audit is complet- h"; Please see CITIZENS, Page 10 4' Citizens group met, Continued from Page I The minister met privately on the is-- land two weeks ago with five residents, telling them she would order the audit. The citizens, who formed a lobby group, complain that the service is so well funded by the province that it should not be running a deficit. 3 The province gave the township roughly $1.8 million last year. The township says it cost more than $2 mil- lion to operate the ferry, which runs daily between the island and the main- land on an hourly schedule. t Cars must pay $6 for a round trip. The township is considering hiking , the fare to $8. ' ' . The tovmship explained proposed in-- . creases this year, saying it feared the . _v operation would run a deficit of more ; -1han$100,000, following a deficit last ~ year of $80,000. A f i'The citizens are demanding facts f - and figures and it's been very hard to I get them," said Dick Dodds, a retired ;, school board administrator who lives ' , on the north shore of the island. 3 He arranged Cansfield's meeting : with the citizens group. He hopes the ' audit will explain how the township has assigned costs. "I don't think anyone's saying there's been anything illegal or fraudulent done," he said, adding that the audit '. - might show that the township has com- plied with the agreement. David Thompson, the township's en- gineer who is responsible for ferry op- erations, said the planned $100 per household charge has been dropped. , "Essentially, we have lowered the I: budget enough and there was not a lot '; ' of public support for it," Thompson said- -- ~~ (Coupled with a proposal to raid . $4,300 from a reserve fund and fare ; . hikes, the township expects it could ' . balance the budget, he said, a dramatic ' ; turnaround from earlyryear projec- 1 vfiqns. ' hompson said Changes to the way , inistrative costs are assigned was 'ajor factor in the revision. ; "They used to do it every year, and they stopped," he said. The citizens group complains that it is unfair that fewer than 300 house- holds on the island are required to pay for the ferry service, since neighbour- ing Wolfe Island has free service run tfiiminister by the province. W11 "What we're really trying to do is have the [Ministry of Transportation] take over the ferry," said Judith Har- O .x' . rower, one of the islanders who met Cansfield earlier this month. "That's really what we would like. " Harrower was forced to file a free- dom of information request in order to get detailed ferry budget figures from the township. Not everyone supports a handoff of ferry operations. "I much prefer that Loyalist Town- ship operate the ferry rather than MTO," said Ian Murray, an island sheep farmer who served 13 years on Amherst Island council and was reeve , for three years. "The farther up the food chain you get in politics the less efficiencyl believe you have." rior ferry service. Murray also doesn't want to see fees eliminated if the province takes over, worrying that would bring more traffic to the island and congestion on the fer- rY- rtrzpp@thewhigcom He believes the island now has supe- .