Kolocep Island – Locals want better connection to the mainland

Kolocep island’s residents are unsatisfied with their status and overall connection with Dubrovnik, whose citizens they are. They’re especially unsatisfied with the regular boat line to Dubrovnik. This is what the residents have to say: “Life on the island is challenging. In previous years, the local community was able to get jobs in their towns, schools were open, and there was no need to have regular boat lines to the mainland. Kolocep island is only 3 km away from Dubrovnik and there were daily departures via Postira boat. It’s necessary to emphasize that Kolocep residents are also Dubrovnik residents. There are 2 main towns on the island where the majority of people live.”

Each day, students and pupils need to travel to the mainland. The boat which carries them is pretty old, but it has an immense meaning to the locals. There is another boat which goes to Kolocep, called Europe. The boat is not suitable for winter even though official statements claim otherwise. Because of the strong bura wind, the boat stays docked in Dubrovnik, making Postira the only boat available. Part of the problem for Europe boat is that water gets into the passenger area when winds get stronger. A lot of locals are elderly people, which means that boat rides could be pretty dangerous. Donje Čelo moor was built in the beginning of the 20th century, but it will be reconstructed soon. That’s when the regular boat line comes in question. Postira tried to dock the moor recently, but the waters were too shallow. Also, the moor is not suitable for winter docking too. 

That is why locals want the contractors to use the larger moor, which would enable boats to safely dock. Another solution is to install a pontoon on the other side of the bay. The latter would be the optimal, and would only require getting the pontoon, which is also financially better. One of these projects needs to be done in the next 15 months, which means that for 2 winters locals will be faced with the same problems. The meeting of the locals, which took place recently, concluded that the Postira boat simply must dock in Donje Ćelo village.

Source: Morski.hr