BUSINESSES on the western side of Windermere are at risk of closing as a result of the delays to the resumption of the ferry service, it is claimed.

Cumbria County Council has said the car ferry needs a new engine as a result of the fire in May which saw dozens of vehicles and passengers evacuated.

The specialist nature of the replacement means it could be October before normal service resumes, but there are fears that could be too late.

"It's a complete disaster, it's writing off the summer season," said Matt Brereton, Cumbria County Council member for High Furness.

One of the main issues of complaint is a lack of signage informing visitors that locations such as Hawkshead, Sawrey and Lakeside are still accessible by road and that a passenger and bike ferry service continues to operate on Windermere.

"If it carries on like it has for the past six weeks there will be people potentially going out of business on the west of the lake," said Cllr Brereton. "We have to compare this to when bridges were damaged during Storm Desmond.

"We need diversion signs and they just haven't been put in place. The ferry is part of the highways network and I just can't understand the delay."

Kim Merrick, owner of Hawkshead cafe and gift shop Poppi Red, had similar frustrations about the lack of information being shared.

"The visitor numbers are definitely down," she said. "At this time of year the ferry would normally have about 1,000 passengers a day, and they're now not coming here. It has a massive impact.

"The main problem is a lot of people coming to Hawkshead think, for some reason, they can only get here by ferry.

"If they put signs on the roads with alternative routes it wouldn't be as bad."

Cllr James Airey, leader of the Conservatives on CCC, said: "The school summer holidays are a crucially important period for the area’s local economy and sees increased demand for Windermere’s ferry service.

“As businesses, residents and local motorists get ready for the peak of our summer tourist season, the council needs to start putting a concerted effort into getting Windermere Ferry up and running.

“It’s not good enough for the ferry to be marooned for five months while the council ponders how to fix a damaged engine. We’re blessed in this country with some of the best marine engineers in the world. It’s time for the council to start picking up the phone and doing what it takes to get the ferry back into service before this year’s summer season is lost.”

The Gazette contacted CCC for a response but had not received one at the time of going to press.