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https://demo.aeonnews.app/editorials/keep-the-islands-within-reach/

Editorials

Keep the islands within reach

Island ferries

The council did the right thing. Now it should publish the figures and give the islanders a seat at the table.

Published October 22, 2026 – By Editorial Staff
1 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@aeonnews.app

The harbour council did the right thing on Tuesday. Keeping the late ferry costs little and matters a great deal to the two thousand people who signed the petition, and to many more who did not.

A city is more than its centre. The islands supply its fish, its summer and a good part of its character. They can only remain places where people live all year if those people can take part in the life of the city on the same terms as everyone else.

The council should now go further: publish the passenger figures every month, so that the March review is based on facts, and give the islanders a seat on the committee that decides the timetable.

Editorial Staff
editorial@aeonnews.app
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https://demo.aeonnews.app/infrastructure/late-ferry-to-the-outer-islands-stays-through-the-winter/

Infrastructure

Late ferry to the outer islands stays through the winter

Island ferries

Residents won: the council keeps the 23:40 departure all winter.

  • Late departure at 23:40 kept all winter
  • Petition signed by more than 2,000 residents
  • Bicycles travel free from November to March
  • Passenger numbers reviewed in March
Published October 23, 2026 – By Editorial Staff
Editorial photo illustration
1 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@aeonnews.app

The harbour council voted on Tuesday to keep the late ferry to the outer islands through the winter, after a petition signed by more than two thousand residents.

The new winter timetable

  • Last departure from the city: 23:40, every day
  • First departure from the islands: 05:50 on weekdays
  • Bicycles travel free from November to March

The ferry operator welcomed the decision on social media.

Fact box: the island ferry

The route has run since 1958 and carries about 410,000 passengers a year. Read more in our guide to the islands.

The timetable takes effect on 1 November.

Editorial Staff
editorial@aeonnews.app

The island ferry

Runs since 1958 between the city quay and four outer islands. About 410,000 passengers a year. Battery-powered since 2024.

https://demo.aeonnews.app/infrastructure/ferry-operator-adds-night-departures/

Infrastructure

Ferry operator adds two night departures after winter decision

Island ferries

Extra crossings at 00:30 on Fridays and Saturdays, at no extra cost for season-ticket holders.

Published October 23, 2026 – By Daniel Brooks
Battery ferry route cuts diesel use on busy island crossing
1 minute read
Daniel Brooks
daniel-brooks@aeondaily.example

The island ferry operator will add two extra night departures from 1 November, a week after the harbour council voted to keep the late crossing through the winter.

The new departures leave the city at 00:30 on Fridays and Saturdays, and return from the outer islands at 01:20. The operator says the battery ferry can make the extra round trip on a single charge.

We heard the islanders. A ferry that stops at eleven tells people they cannot have an evening in town.

Ines Moreau, managing director of Harbour Lines

Season tickets will cover the new departures at no extra cost. Single tickets bought after 22:00 will be sold only in the app, because the ticket office closes at that time.

The council's transport committee will review passenger numbers in March before deciding on next winter's timetable.

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Daniel Brooks
daniel-brooks@aeondaily.example

https://demo.aeonnews.app/society/islanders-plan-winter-market/

Society

Islanders plan a winter market around the late ferry

Island ferries

Twenty stalls at the quay, timed to the afternoon boat out and the new late boat home.

Published October 23, 2026 – By Maya Collins
Potters work together in a bright Nordic ceramics studio.
1 minute read
Maya Collins
maya-collins@aeondaily.example

Traders on the outer islands are planning a Saturday winter market at the ferry quay, timed so that visitors from the city can come out on the afternoon boat and go home on the new late departure.

The first market is on 14 November. Around twenty stalls have signed up so far, most of them selling food, wool and woodwork made on the islands.

"For years the last ferry decided when our evening ended," says Jonas Ek, who runs the café by the quay. "Now we can stay open and people can stay with us."

The island association hopes to hold the market every second Saturday until March.

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Maya Collins
maya-collins@aeondaily.example

https://demo.aeonnews.app/society/why-one-late-ferry-matters/

Society

Why one late ferry matters more than the timetable suggests

Island ferries

Three groups depend on the last boat. Without it, they leave early, stay the night, or move.

Published October 22, 2026 – By Amelia Hart
Nordic ports test shared digital customs lane for small exporters
1 minute read
Amelia Hart
Leader writer

On paper, the council's decision is small: one departure kept, two added at weekends. In practice it changes who can live on the islands.

Three groups depend on the late boat. Hospital and restaurant staff who finish after ten. Teenagers who go to school in the city and want to stay for evening activities. And older residents who no longer drive and come to town for concerts, the cinema or a meal.

Without a late ferry, each of those groups faces the same choice: leave early, stay the night, or move. Island schools have lost a quarter of their pupils in fifteen years, and the island association links part of that to the timetable.

The costs are modest by comparison. The operator puts the extra departures at about 180,000 euros a year, less than the council spends on the harbour's Christmas lights.

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The real test comes in March, when the passenger numbers are counted. If the late boats run half-empty, the debate will start again. If they fill up, the council will have found a cheap way to keep the islands alive.

Amelia Hart
Leader writer
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