APT James Commissioned

Trinidad and Tobago's own custom-built high speed catamaran, the APT James, is ready to commence operations on the inter-island sea bridge. On Thursday, Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan and other Government officials sailed to Tobago on board the vessel, as it made its maiden voyage. After docking, the vessel was officially commissioned at the Scarborough Port. During the short ceremony, Minister Sinanan shared good news regarding inter-island transportation. Chief Secretary Ancil Dennis, in his address, thanked the Prime Minister, the Minister of Transport, and NIDCO for the delivery, stressing that with the list of challenges Tobagonians faced on the sea bridge, decisive action was needed. He said Tobagonians should honour APT James by making full use of the vessel. Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley thanked all who advocated for new vessels, even making mention of the Progressive Democratic Patriots' swim to Toco to protest the sea bridge issue. He said although APT James, who advocated for Tobago's development was not a member of the PNM, he deserved to be honoured. The vessel, which was constructed by an Australian Company, has a 926-passenger, 222-car and 90-truck-lane capacity. Children of the late activist APT James, Bernice TM James, Oritha F James Simon, and Selwyn P James, were present at the ceremony and unveiled one of the honorary plaques on the vessel.