A NEW pontoon could be installed in a corner of the St Helier Marina to increase berthing options for leisure vessels.
Ports of Jersey has submitted a planning application to put an L-shaped pontoon in the shallow area near the Lifeboat Café.
Until 2014, the space was occupied by infrastructure that helped load vehicles onto car ferries when they berthed at the Albert Pier.
This was removed as part of the upgrade to the nearby Albert Pier pontoons and the space has recently been used to store floating equipment, but Ports has said it could provide more berthing options for leisure vessels between six and eight metres long.
The 60-metre-by-40-metre pontoon would be similar to those already installed in the marina and would also use a redundant bridge-link, repurposed from one of the Albert Pier berths, to provide shoreside access, water and electrical services from an area near the RNLI station house.
Head of maritime operations Louise Stafford said: ‘These new pontoons will be a better use of the space, which is currently used to store unused pontoons and a working barge platform. It will also benefit the boating community by providing more berthing options and tidying up that area of the marina.’
The pontoons that are currently stored in the area will be reused in drying harbours around the Island.
