Reports published over the past few months showed that the number of people travelling to and from Gozo has been on a steady increase this year and the first two weeks of this month were no exception, as Gozo Channel Co. registered a 7.3 per cent increase in the number of passengers over the same period last year.

The company’s latest statistics also showed there was a nine per cent increase in the number of vehicles that crossed over between 1 and 16 September.

In total, Gozo Channel ferries carried in that period a total of 226,140 passengers and 57,768 vehicles, according to the statistics.

Moreover, the company is expecting a big influx of Maltese travelling to Gozo this weekend, since Independence Day, a public holiday, falls on a Friday this year.

During the first eight months of this year, there was an average increase of 9.1 per cent in the number of passengers using the Gozo Channel service, with the highest increases having been registered in January (+17.7 per cent), February (+14.6 per cent) and March (+13.6 per cent).

An average increase of 10.1 per cent was registered as regards the number of vehicles that crossed over between the two islands during the first eight months of this year.