Ferry operators saw only a slight increase in traffic during the first nine months of this year, in spite of the ash cloud crisis forcing air passengers to consider alternative forms of transport.
The Passenger Shipping Association said there had been a 1.2% rise in passengers over the same period last year. Cars also increased by the same amount, but the number of coaches was up 5%.
The figures are published as Stena Line prepares for the christening of its second superferry, Stena Britannica, by Susan Hammond, wife of the secretary of state for transport Philip Hammond.
The two ships will operate on the Harwich-Hook route and complete the company’s largest ever investment programme of £375m.
Investment in ferry travel continues with P&O Ferries introducing the first of the two largest ferries ever designed for service on the Dover Strait in January. The Spirit of Britain and The Spirit of France represent a €360 million investment by P&O Ferries.
"The latest ferry figures demonstrate a renewed interest in ferry travel and include the dramatic contribution made by ferries during the ash cloud crisis," said William Gibbons of the Passenger Shipping Association.
"Stena’s huge commitment to service improvement with the launch of Stena Britannica, together with service initiatives from virtually all our members, illustrates the strong commitment to ferry travel.”
Other significant ferry developments announced recently include the introduction by Fastnet of a service between Swansea and Cork, the launch of a new Portsmouth–Bilbao route in March 2011 by Brittany Ferries, the merger this summer of Norfolkline and DFDS to become DFDS Seaways serving routes to most of Northern Europe; the introduction of a new ferry by LD Lines, the Norman Leader, on the Portsmouth-Le Havre route from May 2011, and the introduction this summer of a totally refitted Condor Splendide catamaran ferry on the Channel Islands routes.
By Linsey McNeill
