RESIDENTS around Windermere are going to have a greater say in the running of the cross-lake ferry following this year’s fire.

The county council has agreed to re-establish the Windermere Ferry Advisory Committee which last met in January 2012 following calls from councillors.

It follows a fire in May which saw more than 80 people evacuated which put the vital service out of action for five months.

The ferry, which can carry 100 passengers and 18 vehicles, connects Bowness with Hawkshead, and led to lengthy diversions by road around England’s longest lake.

It also cost Cumbria County Council £320,000 in lost revenue during one of the hottest summers in years.

Cllr Nick Cotton, the chairman of the South Lakeland local committee appeared before the authority’s cabinet on Thursday with the request.

He said: “We want to see the reintroduction of the Windermere Ferry Advisory Committee so there is local input for the running of the ferry, and so people around the lake can feed into the future management of it.”

“We were all very disappointed when the fire took place. There was no problem with the evacuation but it could have been a lot more serious.”

“Afterwards, we suddenly had a room full of instant experts and marine engineers who could have fixed the job in half-an-hour. Everybody wanted the job done as soon as possible,” said Cllr Cotton (Lib Dem, Sedbergh and Kirkby Lonsdale).

Cllr Keith Little, cabinet member for transport, agreed that the committee be reintroduced.

He said: “We will work with South Lakeland local committee to get that started as quickly as possible and my suggestion is that it meets twice-yearly.”

“When the fire broke out, there were lots of people on board and it could have been much worse. Between the on-duty crew, the fire service and the police, everyone was saved and the management of that process worked very well.”

The cause of the fire was found to have been a hydraulic hose bursting, although the council’s maintenance regime was not found at fault.

Cllr Little (Lab, Maryport) said: “The ferry is now reinstated with a new crew and we had over 100 people applying for jobs. We have some very experienced people on there who have all been through the necessary training and the ferry has been through all the tests it needs.”

Cllr Cotton said it was reassuring to know there was a “robust system” in place. “Let’s hope it runs efficiently and smoothly for many years to come,” he said.