Port Macquarie-Hastings Council will also seek a report on the progress of the Maria River Road upgrade and the possibility the state government could provide funding to supplement or co-fund the operation of ferry services.

Mayor Peta Pinson said council has received a number of requests to increase the hours of operation of the Hibbard ferry, largely centred around increased waiting times and vehicle queuing for the Settlement Point Ferry service.

The Settlement Point ferry currently operates 24/7. In comparison, the Hibbard ferry operates from 6:30am-9:50am and 2:45pm-6:50pm Monday to Friday, and 8am-6:50pm on weekends and public holidays.

It is proposed to trial an extension of the hours of operation for the Hibbard ferry over a six week period. During this time, data would be collected on total vehicles transported, vehicles per trip, total crossings, vehicles left on the bank and trip times for both ferries to allow for comparison and assessment.

"The ferries are the roadway to our north shore residents and community and they are both relied on very heavily. This request had come through a meeting the general manager and I had with the North Shore Progress Association and they expressed considerable concern about parents retrieving their children from school - both getting them to school in the morning, and in the afternoon having to leave home extremely early to retrieve children because of the line up," Cr Pinson said.

At an estimated cost of $22,500, a six week trial period is proposed to be funded from council's ferry reserve. The the ferry reserve is in place to support the purchase of a new ferry in three to four years, along with periodic maintenance and slipping costs.

While it is possible to support a six week trial of these extended hours, the ferry contractor would require a 10 week lead time to make the necessary staffing arrangements for any permanent change in operational hours of the Hibbard ferry.

With the Hibbard ferry due to undergo the six week out of water slipping in February 2021, a trial of extended hours could not begin until the end of March 2021.

Director Dan Bylsma confirmed there is data available that could assist council in determining whether or not it extends ferry hours.

"The data available to us at the moment is collected by the current contractor who operates the ferry service both at Settlement Point and Hibbard. The data centres around Settlement Point ferry because that's the ferry that runs 24/7," he explained.

"What we have is data throughout the 24 hour operation of the Settlement Point ferry that points to waiting times, the number of vehicles traveling on Settlement Point ferry, the number of vehicles that are indicative of those left on the shore or the bank on either side of the river when the ferry is full. That information has been collected for some time.

"We have a regular review of those statistics with the current contractor and certainly have noted throughout the COVID period that the increased use of ferry has certainly spiked at times.

"We have paid particular attention to it throughout October and into early November where we were getting a number of consistent concerns around waiting times and vehicles left on the bank.

"We have been resisting the need to extend hours on the Hibbard ferry because on one particular day and time of week it may be busy, and the following week at the same time it may not be busy at all."

Mr Bylsma said a trial will allow council to gather data from Settlement Point and Hibbard ferries on hours of operation when both are running for the full extent of the day, and the number of vehicles using it before and after the trial.

"There is a cost for this trial period. If extended any further than six weeks it needs consideration on how that additional level of service is funded," he said.

Deputy mayor Lisa Intemann said it is important the community understands a trial does necessarily mean an extension of operational hours permanently.

Cr Hawkins said many ferry services across the state are not funded by councils, but rather the state government.

Cr Turner asked the acting general manger if a recent request by council to the state government to co-fund the operation of the ferry had received a response. That request came after the state government provided financial support for the operation of a ferry service in northern Sydney.

"Our request was respectfully declined," Mr Sharp said.

Mr Sharp also confirmed it would cost about $150,000 if extended operational hours for the Hibbard ferry were put in place permanently.

Cr Alley moved the motion for council to also explore trial options for time extensions at key pressure points of the day within the ferry's current morning and afternoon operational hours and present a report to councillors for consideration in February before a decision is made on how to proceed.

"It's important we provide the best service we can to the people on the north shore but there is a cost associate with that," Cr Alley said.

"The general manager indicated it is ultimately $150,000 a year ... this is not a small cost, we have to be very careful.

"If we run a trial without clear indication that you have funding in place to continue the trial if it's successful, it is setting an expectation in the community where you are going to disappoint people later.

"There is a very good chance we can identify other ways to run the ferry service based on the information we have, and have been gathering, that will provide a better service to our community at a significantly reduced cost than the $150,000 to run the service for the whole day from Monday to Friday."

Cr Pinson said she was "bitterly disappointed" councillors have opted to delay a decision on a trial until February.

"What this does is sends a message to our community that matters of importance to them will be deferred or delayed," she said.

"I would be bitterly disappointed if we are going to procrastinate rather than facilitate what the community is asking for."

Cr Sharon Griffiths supported the mayor saying it was time for councillors to "stop talking" and deliver something practical they could review directly and make absolute decisions on and then "get on with the job".

Cr Intemann said councillors are not stopping the trial from happening, but rather looking at options to ensure they are better informed.

"It's not a case of denying the community, it's a case of properly considering the facts before making a decision," she said.

Cr Alley said it is the responsibility of councillors to make the best decisions with all of the resources made available to them.

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