Plans have been put forward to create a marina on Hinson Island to help residents hit by a slashed ferry service.

The planning application, submitted by Alan Paris on behalf of a group of residents, proposed the creation of a two-armed floating dock extending from a concrete ramp already in place on the southeastern side of the island.

Documents included with the application said the proposal was increasingly important for residents who required boats to travel to and from the island given the reduced ferry schedule.

The paperwork said: “Hinson Island is a vibrant, year-round community with diverse needs and increasing vulnerabilities.

“The absence of a safe, weather-protected marina undermines residents’ ability to live productive, connected lives.

“The decline of the public ferry service has transformed what was once a manageable inconvenience into a daily challenge, which brings its own safety risks.

“A purpose-built marina is not a frivolous luxury.

“With a faltering ferry service it has now become an absolutely essential and critical infrastructure to allow the community to continue to be viable and to function in a healthy manner.”

Planning documents said that more than 50 people lived on Hinson Island full-time and required boats to travel to and from the island but most properties did not not have weather-protected boat access.

Many residents had relied on ferries but the documents noted that service had been cut dramatically in recent years.

In July 2025, the Government restricted operations along the Pink Route, which services Warwick, Paget and the City of Hamilton, to weekdays only with seven scheduled loops along the route per day.

However, even after the reduction in service, mechanical issues with the ferries caused it to be sporadically halted.

The reduction of service sparked an online petition with more than 1,000 people signing up to urge the Government to bolster the route.

The planning documents said: “Several years ago the last ferry of the day was at 10pm, now it is at 6pm, necessitating the use of private boats to go anywhere in the evening.

“There is no weekend service, weekday service is intermittent and mechanical failures are frequent. There is no predictable prospect of improvement.

“Every household now relies, at least in part, on private boats, yet safe, accessible berths remain in short supply.

“The decline of public transport has amplified the urgency of the issues outlined above, leaving residents without a viable fallback and heightening the need for shared, weather-protected infrastructure.”

The documents said that 11 homes on the western side of Hinson Island were directly exposed to westerly winds and winter storms, making on-property mooring “impractical, uninsurable or outright impossible”.

The application said that a shared marina would help ensure all-weather boat access required by families and seniors who lived on the island.

Documents noted: “A significant portion of the island’s population is of retirement age.

“Many face serious safety risks when accessing boats via swing moorings and punts, especially in adverse weather.

“Injuries have occurred. As mobility declines, the absence of walk-on access to a sheltered mooring becomes not just inconvenient but dangerous.”

The documents said that several members of the population had suffered heart attacks which required them to be rapidly taken to Darrell’s Wharf ferry dock to meet an ambulance.

The applicant put forward that a marina offering safe berthing for multiple houses would be more efficient and have less of an environmental impact than the installation of individual docks across Hinson Island.

The documents said: “As with the majority of other marina installations located throughout Bermuda, the proposed marina is not a convenience. It is a critical infrastructure project for Hinson Island.

“Unlike other communities with marinas, Hinson Island residents lack alternative transport links.

“The facility will provide safe, reliable and equitable access to essential services, ensuring the sustainability of this community.”