Will Chapman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >The net result of this is that existing boats will spend more >time on the water (presumably increasing the cost of maintaining >and monitoring to BW) without producing any significant >additional direct income.
As it turns out, that presumption seems to be incorrect. I was strongly in favour of a usage element in navigation charges, based on it. However, BW did some research, and came to the conclusion that the marginal cost to it of a vessel navigating is so small that it can be ignored. It (and I) have therefore concluded that usage-based charging can't be justified. However, another conclusion is that "boats spending more time on the water" (surely they were on the water anyway? But I assume you mean 'navigating on the water') would *not* increase maintenance or other operating costs of BW significantly. In other words, for BW it is fixed costs that count the most, indeed almost entirely. Adrian Adrian Stott 07956-299966
