The West End faces its first big test of the cruise ship season today as the Norwegian Breakaway delivers up to 6,000 people, with the Summit bringing 3,000 more tomorrow.

This year’s policy for Dockyard has come under fire for steering visitors away from public transport, while others say that taxis and minibuses are up for the challenge.

“Let’s see how it really works out, and then we can make an informed opinion,” said Tafari Outerbridge of Bermuda Island Taxis. “There’s a bit of trial and error because it’s a new initiative.”

Public transport has struggled in previous years, but Mr Outerbridge said taxi operators “have felt for a long time that we should not be competing with the buses — they have decreased their amount of lift with the cruise ships, thereby increasing the lift for locals who need to get around”.

“It’s a good initiative and we’re making an effort to have it work out.”

Bus operators held a round of meetings yesterday at the Bermuda Industrial Union, but will be back on the job with normal service running today.

Accommodating the high volume of visitors coming into Dockyard proved a challenge for buses on heavy days last year.

Ferries have also switched over to the summer schedule, effective this week, with the Orange route serving St George’s up and running once more.

The charter vessel Millennium is scheduled to head for Bermuda tomorrow out of Rhode Island, and will pick up the St George’s route once it is readied for service.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Tourism Development and Transport said the Millennium’s crossing usually took about three days.

Meanwhile, Glenn Smith of the Bermuda Tourism Authority confirmed that the BTA was aiming to have an extra complement of tourism ambassadors on hand this morning at the West End.

“With the first arrival of the Breakaway we’ll have more people up there to help everybody get to where they’re going and answer questions.”

It will be the fourth year that the mega-ship calls on Dockyard.

Another change to this year’s tourism policy will be a charge passed on to vendors for the bus schedules, maps and brochures, which remain in high demand for visitors.

The BTA announced earlier in the month that it was introducing a fee: businesses stocking up to 1,000 schedules will pay 25 cents for each, with a 20 cent charge per map. Brochure charges will vary according to type. The fees drop for larger orders.

The paperwork was printed by the Department of Public Transportation until 2012, when it was passed on to the Department of Tourism, and then to the BTA.

An e-mail to vendors described the cost as burdensome and something the BTA “can no longer carry alone” — although it will continue to cover part of the cost.

“This method is fair because BTA resources for printing are now used more equitably for all stakeholders,” the statement added.