A representative group comprising of hundreds of boat owners and riverside businesses argues that the number of pleasure boats on the Shannon river is significantly decreasing, and this decline is expected to intensify further if Waterways Ireland (WI) goes ahead with its planned new charges and regulations. The group, namely Shannon Lakes & Rivers Group (SLRG), is diligently expressing its concern that the new rule, such as a €200 registration fee, would compel more boat owners to leave the river, thereby severely impacting small businesses on its banks.
The new bylaws proposed for the Shannon Navigation System will be debated upon at a meeting with a delegation from WI due before the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee on the 4th of July.
The Vintners Federation of Ireland, greatly perturbed by the situation, has sent a letter to WI expressing its opposition to the proposed new permit fee for pleasure boats journeying on the Shannon-Erne Waterway from northern to southern parts. It is of the view that the fee would act as a “tourist tax” and essentially create a “financial boundary” between the Republic and Northern Ireland.
John Dunne, an SLRG member from Carrick on Shannon, noted that there has been a steep reduction in the quantity of cruisers. Businesses in towns and settlements along the Shannon River are enduring the repercussions. Using various measurements such as lock passages and bridge lifts, data shows that there has been a 50 percent decrease in these quantities in the past two decades until 2023, from an initial 76,000 lock passages in 2003 to a mere 35,667 last year. According to the SLRG, there was another significant decline of 21 percent from 2018 to 2023, when lock passages fell from 45,298 to 35,667 and anticipates a further drop this year.
Reflecting the state of affairs, Joe Young, from Sligo, who has owned a boat on the river for the past 30 years, declared his plan to sell his boat. Despite his annual payment of €1,000 to a private marina to moor his 37-foot cruiser, he has decided to purchase a motorhome and terminate his boating activities. The condition that caps the number of days per month a boat can be moored publicly further aggravates his case.
Mr Young questions the vague travel restrictions, remarking that their detachment from the river is apparent and it confounds him why this is the case. He recognises the striking lack of private boats during his recent three-week sojourney to Lough Derg, and notes a discernible quietness in pubs and jetties.
Tom Gannon, a cruiser owner and a member of Leitrim Tourism Network, insists that WI should prioritise understanding the reasons behind the dip in marine vehicles before enforcing new policies that could potentially worsen the situation. He shares knowledge of three acquaintances selling their boats to purchase camper vans. Although people are generally accepting of paying a reasonable and just fee, he labels the proposed surge in winter moorage fees from €62.50 to €300 as “excessive”, particularly since both water and electricity supplies are disconnected during winter.
John Pierce, who has been the owner of the Barge pub and restaurant in Leitrim village for the past 30 years, expresses concern over decreased river traffic impacting local businesses. He mentions how unlike previous years, his establishment wasn’t as crowded as expected. According to the chairman of the VFI’s Leitrim branch, the sole crowd he managed to pull in consisted of 10 Germans.
Running the Whiskey Still pub and restaurant in Dromineer, Co Tipperary with her husband, Joe, Rita Ryan considers the 2008 financial crash, unfavourable weather conditions and unsocial activities at certain marinas as possible reasons for the dwindling number of boats. She mentions that after the crash, a significant amount of cruisers were sold.
She adds regarding the business implications, “month-on-month, there’s been a noticeable decrease in lake traffic this June compared to the previous year” and warns that any regulations likely to lower their already limited-summer-season business will be damaging.
Waterways Ireland (WI) has proposed new regulations for the Shannon waterways and canal bylaws, following a detailed public consultation. WI suggests that the updates are crucial due to shifts in both environmental stipulations and health and safety rules, and the evolving nature of the waterways themselves over the past 30 years.
WI’s suggestions include an increase in the annual registration fee from its original €127 in 1988 to €200. Notably, the present fee of €127 is solely for canal usage and does not apply to the Shannon waterways, which currently does not require any registration fee.
Additionally, WI suggests an increase in the five-month winter mooring fee from its prior rate of €62.50 in 1988 to €300, which it insists is still competitively priced in comparison to other options. They also proposed a standard charge of €40 for three-month cruising for any visiting vessels regardless of their starting point, confident it would not dispirit potential tourists.
A WI spokesperson also mentioned that, since 2003, the number of boats registered with them has tripled. She noted that now, boats used for day cruising, jet-skis and powerboats used for waterskiing are quite common. However, since these activities are predominantly local, these vessels remain unaccounted for in lock passage figures.
The Shannon Leisure Recreational Group (SLRG) estimates that the number of cruisers on the Shannon currently stands at around 6,000. They also highlighted that several boats, now sold or dismantled, have not yet been deregistered.