THE number of passengers using the floating bridge — whether by car or on foot — has dropped significantly since the new vessel came into action, the County Press can reveal.

New information reveals the number of passengers using the bridge has fallen since the new vessel started service — every single month.

The Isle of Wight Council said the new bridge was very different to the old one and making direct comparisons between them did not tell the full story.

Notable drops include the number of foot passengers falling from 22,030 in December 2016 to 11,753 in December 2017.

Pedestrians using the bridge dropped by nearly half from October 2016 to October 2017 — 29,093 to 15,974.

More than 26,000 cars used the crossing in June 2016, whereas only 15,398 crossed in June 2017 and 17,374 in June 2018.

Both foot passenger crossings and vehicle crossings dropped in number every month from May 2017 when Floating Bridge 6 was introduced.

A council spokesperson said: “The new boat is bigger, meaning more vehicles can use it, and it has a double deck for foot passengers.

“This means it takes longer to load and unload, particularly in the busier months, and especially as foot passengers must get on and off before cars for safety reasons.

“In November, it operated at 99.5 percent of its scheduled hours.

“It has also operated at more than 90 per cent for eight out of 11 months this year.

“As these figures show, the floating bridge is a reliable service and we encourage everyone to use it.”