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Express catches up with the man in charge of the island's ports to understand the impact the virus crisis has had on the island's gateways.
As the nature of Corona 2020 moves from a health crisis to economic one, so the frontline shifts.
At time of writing, case numbers are non-existent in Guernsey, and very small in Jersey – but what will be the effect of opening up our borders, which have so far, perhaps, been our strongest defence?
Robust testing, tracking and quarantine will clearly be key; but islanders are still likely to have to get used to a very different selection of travel links than they enjoyed previously.
One of the islanders who is at the heart of decision-making in this critical area of local life is Matt Thomas, CEO of the Ports of Jersey. Here, speaking towards the end of June, he shares how the organisation has weathered the virus storm...
As we look forward, one of our key challenges is how do we ensure people can once again travel safely and confidently, which remains our priority? This is why we have been developing a range of new wellbeing procedures in our terminals to allow them to do so. These have been developed in close cooperation with other airports and regulators across Europe. We are committed to providing the highest level of care for passengers travelling to and from Jersey.
What has really helped you to manage the crisis?
Without question, I would say our staff from across the entire business. They have been awesome, and have really stepped up to the mark, remaining positive, professional and incredibly flexible throughout this crisis. Our primary focus has been to ensure the uninterrupted operation of the humanitarian flights, and the critical maritime supply chain. They have ensured operations have operated smoothly and have readily adapted themselves to meet these new, and often unexpected, challenges.
Pictured: The PoJ CEO praised the efforts of staff to keep the island's ports running during the challenging lockdown period.
In addition to supporting our operation, many of our employees have volunteered to support key government agencies across the island; whether that be our security team working at the hospitals, firefighters driving ambulances, our project management team supporting the construction of the Nightingale Hospital, or helping to staff the corona virus helplines. This is something that I am very proud of. And even in their own leisure time, many of them have volunteered to support the wonderful charities that continue to operate; whether that be making or delivering meals to those in need or reaching out to the more vulnerable members of our community.
It’s fair to say that 2020 has been a dramatic year in the aviation industry. Of course, as an airport we had to deal with the collapse of Flybe, whose roots first started in Jersey, so of course there’s that personal connection. While this was deeply disappointing, we were able to pick up the pieces quite quickly and had already sought alternative carriers to take over these lost Flybe routes, as Jersey remains an attractive (and profitable) destination for airlines.
Pictured: Just as PoJ was looking at dealing with the Flybe collapse, the pandemic hit.
However, just when we were turning the corner on that issue, we were faced with this pandemic, which brought an abrupt halt to commercial services, by both sea and air, not only locally but on a global scale, the likes of which the industry has never been seen before. It will have far reaching consequences for the entire travel and tourism industry. We need a ‘Team Jersey’ approach to restore connectivity, which will play a critical role in the economic recovery for the Island.
We are a commercial business and it’s the revenues we generate through things such as rentals, advertising, car parking and passenger charges that ensures we continue to operate. Although we are government-owned, we do not receive any financial support from them, and haven’t done for many, many years. The financial impact of the pandemic continues to be significant.
Pictured: PoJ says it has "sufficient financial reserves".
Across Europe, airports have seen a 99% reduction in demand since the end of March. That said, we have sufficient financial reserves at present. We are looking forward to the restrictions on travel being lifted as the crisis passes and redoubling our efforts to generate the revenues that will enable us to invest in the critical infrastructure at the airport and harbour.
There’s no doubt that the pandemic has created challenges that all of us had not anticipated, both at work and in our personal lives. At the same time, the situation has demanded that we have had to be incredibly flexible and to work more closely than ever, in partnership with our key stakeholders and in particular with the government. We are firmly of the view that it would be a mistake to try to find our way back, in the weeks and months ahead, to the way things were in February. Our focus is on the future, rather than the past. We will be much more actively involved with every aspect of the airport and harbour supply chains.
Without doubt, the way in which we travel in the future will be different to what we are used to, certainly for the foreseeable future. At all times, we will put appropriate measures in place to ensure our passengers can travel from the airport and harbour safely, and with confidence. There is uncertainty in many aspects of our life, but I am confident that as a business we can adapt, as will our future travellers.
Pictured: The Jersey Airport covid testing centre.
Living on an island, it’s essential that people have the opportunity to move freely, not only for economic reasons but ultimately for their own wellbeing and to stay connected with loved ones. The pandemic has certainly reminded us of the crucial importance of connectivity.
Jersey remains an attractive destination as our increasing air passenger numbers in recent years clearly demonstrate. In fact, in 2019 they were the highest they have been for almost 20 years. Our airline and ferry partners are keen to recommence services once the travel restrictions have been lifted, but it is difficult at this time to predict future demand with confidence.
We fully appreciate the reluctance on the part of many to travel during this period, but equally there are those who are anxious for travel restrictions to be relaxed to allow them to travel off-island and meet with family and friends. Our excellent relationships with our travel providers are incredibly valuable and we continue to liaise closely with them to restore connectivity.
Since the start of the crisis, our primary focus has been on the uninterrupted operation of the airport and harbour. Ensuring the resilience of our operations has been taken to a new level. Consequently, we took the early decision when lockdown began to suspend our planned capital projects, including the Future Airport project.
Pictured: Work on the Future Airport project was suspended when lockdown began.
These projects remain an integral part of our future business plans and remain critical in order for our ports to remain open, safe and compliant. The reasons for carrying out these plans are well-documented and the investment for these will come directly from our financial reserves, and not through government funding.
With particular reference to the Future Airport project, we have already invested over £6m towards our enabling works and had we not suspended work due to the covid-19 pandemic we would be well underway on stage one of the project.
We are firmly of the belief that the development of the airport and harbour are essential if we are to continue to operate as a 21st century fit for purpose gateway. It is critical that we create an environment that supports the future development of connectivity for the island.
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