The English Channel Ports


Ramsgate

The first commercial Cross Channel activity from Ramsgate began in the 1960's with the Hoverlloyd enterprise. Their foot passenger only S. R. N. 6 hovercraft used the old harbour, but the delivery of the much larger car carrying S. R. N. 4 versions saw a move down the coast to Pegwell Bay in 1969. The Swift and Sure were followed by Sir Christopher and The Prince of Wales, and half hourly flights to Calais were operating in the hey day of the service. At low tide the hovercraft would skim across the sands to reach the terminal. The Pegwell Bay operation was reduced to repairs and maintenance soon after the formation of Hoverspeed in 1981 and closed altogether in 1983.

Meanwhile, a car ferry linkspan and outer wall was constructed at Ramsgate Harbour to facilitate a new service to Dunkerque (Ouest) initiated by the Finnish owned Sally Line. It mushroomed into a profitable concern, though with a serious lack of direct motorway access to the port facility, Ramsgate was never going to hinder the success of its big neighbour, Dover.

The joint Sally Line service with R. M. T. brought Oostende sailings to the port in 1994. However the two firms were too small to compete with the Channel Tunnel. The Dunkerque (Ouest) route lost its conventional ships in 1996 and closed a year later after a token catamaran service was deemed unviable. Oostende Lines was another casualty in 1997. The Australian based Holyman Group moved in to run two catamarans in place of the R. M. T. ships. These moved to Dover in 1998 in conjunction with Hoverspeed. Since then, the Trans-Europa Ferries service has reactivated freight crossings to Oostende.


Dover

Dover has always been strategically positioned to offer the shortest crossing to the Continent. Just over twenty miles separates the Kentish town from Calais in northern France. Since the Romans settled there, Dover has been involved in maritime activity. The large outer harbour is enclosed by the Eastern Arm, the Southern Breakwater, and the Admiralty Pier. It was here that the Marine Station (later known as Western Docks Station) was built at the beginning of the twentieth century to serve boat trains from London Victoria. Passenger ferries docked alongside the rail terminal and carried travellers to Oostende, Calais, and Boulogne.

The train ferries which conveyed rail wagons to Dunkerque were accommodated in a tidal basin complete with the port's first linkspan for roll-on loading. The first car ferry berths were built over at the Eastern Arm within the 'Camber', a small inner harbour. These opened in 1953 to serve the first drive on ships of the time.

The Eastern Docks mushroomed from this location through a progressive series of land reclamation schemes. It is here where all the large 'super ferries' dock these days, with five wide double deck linkspans available. The vast terminal filters millions of people and their vehicles through the port of Dover every year. The Hoverspeed operation is based across the harbour adjacent to the Prince of Wales Pier. The Admiralty Pier was last used by a ferry in 1995 when Nord Pas-de-Calais closed the train ferry service to Dunkerque (Ouest). The Jetfoils which had succeeded the passenger boats to Oostende were removed in 1994 with the closure of the Western Docks Station. This listed building was converted to become Dover's new cruise liner terminal, and included amongst the list of impressive visitors is Royal Princess.

Dover has always been the jewel in the crown of leading Cross Channel operators. In 1996 P. & O. offered twenty five sailings a day to Calais. Stena Line ran twenty daily return trips which were matched by Seafrance. This amounted to an incredible one hundred and fifty single crossings of the Channel on the Dover/Calais route alone every twenty four hours. This was an unprecedented level of activity at the port. Not included in these statistics were the Hoverspeed services and the P. & O. freight runs to Zeebrugge.

Such figures are never likely to be repeated again. The huge amount of surplus capacity was leading to financial ruin for the ferry companies. Services on the sea were outnumbering Le Shuttle departures through the Channel Tunnel. P. & O. and Stena Line got together in 1998 to reduce their combined contribution by a third.

Today Dover is still the largest and busiest ferry port in the world. It is Mecca for anybody who takes an interest in Cross Channel shipping.


'Fight The Pirates': A novel marketing slogan emblazoned on the superstructure of Speed One as she crosses Dover Harbour.
Photograph contributed by Trevor Boston


Folkestone

Only seven miles down the coast from Dover, Folkestone was once a serious contender for the Channel throne since the evolution of the railways and their connecting passenger boats to the Continent. It was the arrival of car ferries which really made a crucial difference. Dover was already in the process of facilitating drive on ships, whereas Folkestone could only offer cranes to winch vehicles into the holds of antiquated passenger vessels. A linkspan was finally built in 1972, by which time Dover was far ahead in terms of market share.

British Rail built two sister ships, Hengist and Horsa, dedicated to the Boulogne route. Its French and Belgian partners continued to offer additional services to Calais and Oostende in parallel with Dover. However, these disappeared in the 1980's when it made economical sense to filter all traffic through the larger port.

Once the Channel Tunnel was open, Sealink British Ferries had given notice for the closure of the Folkestone/Boulogne route by 1993. The axe came earlier than expected when Stena Line succeeded the route and its ships and was seeking massive reductions in overheads. The last sailings were in 1991 and the Stena Hengist and Stena Horsa were sold.

Hoverspeed stepped in the following year with Hoverspeed Boulogne to inaugurate high speed crossings to her namesake. Boat trains to the Harbour became limited to spasmodic workings by the 'Orient Express' train. Folkestone lost its Seacat service in October 2000 and the small freight operator, Falcon Marfreight soon folded thereafter.


Newhaven

The East Sussex port of Newhaven was also developed by the railway companies for Cross Channel traffic. Train services from London Victoria used to bring foot passengers straight to the quayside for the ferries to Dieppe. Direct through workings lasted until 1994. This was determined the most direct London to Paris route.

Traditionally the Newhaven/Dieppe service was a joint venture between the former London, Brighton & South Coast Railway and S. N. C. F./French Railways. A fascinating formula for dividing revenue was carried out by calculating the length of track from the ports to their respective capital cities. Hence the French received the lion's share of the profit since its Dieppe/Paris portion of the route was the longest.

As a Sealink service, the joint operation continued until 1985 when S. N. C. F./French Railways took over completely. Dredging was required to accommodate Newhaven's largest ever visitor in the form of Champs Elysées in 1990. The port has two linkspans situated along the eastern side of the River Ouse. There is enough width for vessels up to 130 metres in length to turn within the harbour confines. Newhaven has a long outer wall on the western side of the river which makes an excellent viewpoint to watch the passing ferries. From here the coast along to Seaford Cliff is clearly visible.

The Dieppe ferry became a P. & O. Stena Line business and was maintained by Stena Cambria and the fast Elite catamaran. With the ship having been downgraded, there was speculation that Newhaven's ferry activity would sadly decline just as Folkestone's had. The four hour crossing could not match the shorter and much more intensified Dover/Calais run. Unofficial speculation that the route would close was confirmed when the Elite was withdrawn from service at the end of 1998 and her charter was not renewed. Stena Cambria was a poor performer, suffering mechanical failures, and offering a rotten standard of accommodation. It was therefore not surprising that P. & O. Stena decided to cut their losses and finish for business at Newhaven. The Dieppe route made a staggering twenty seven million pound loss since 1995, despite savings made by the joint operation.

A glimmer of hope for Newhaven comes from the port owner, Sea Containers, who now operate a seasonal service to Dieppe using one of their 'Superseacat' fast mono-hull ferries. The Super Seacat One is in fact a sister of Stena Pegasus, a previous visitor to the port.

Conventional ferry operations returned in 2001 in the form of French state owned Transmanche Ferries who wished to fill the gap left by P. & O. Stena's departure.


Portsmouth

Probably more famous for its historic naval dockyards than Cross Channel traffic, Portsmouth is the youngest Continental ferry port on the south coast of England. Since the arrival of the railway, a train connected ferry has been maintained between Portsmouth Harbour Station and Ryde Pier on the Isle of Wight.

It was not until 1976 that Brittany Ferries arrived with Armorique to launch an experimental route to St. Malo. The nine hour passage was a surprising success and the French firm introduced the larger Prince of Brittany two years later. Meanwhile, Townsend Thoresen was interested in the possibility of moving its Southampton business twenty miles east to Portsmouth. The advantages were two fold: The sea crossings could be reduced by an hour, avoiding a lengthy journey along Southampton Water and around the Isle of Wight. The port also received direct motorway access. The 1964 built Viking I was renamed Viking Victory and began a new Portsmouth/Cherbourg service in 1976. Townsend Thoresen transferred the rest of its Southampton based ships by 1984.

Brittany Ferries broke into Normandy territory in 1986 with a new link to Ouistreham, a small fishing port close to Caen. The route is now the company's best selling service. The Sealink operation to the Channel Islands from Portsmouth was abandoned in 1986 after just eight years. Their place was taken by Channel Island Ferries who beat the competition by undercutting the fares. The Guernsey (St. Peter Port) and St. Helier (Jersey) destinations were lost when the operator moved to Poole.

Nevertheless Portsmouth is the biggest player on the Western Channel. It is served regularly by five giant ferries, including Pride of Bilbao, the largest Cross Channel vessel ever to sail from Britain. It offers daily services to four French destinations and a long haul twice weekly crossing to Spain. The M275 brings vehicles straight to the port gates. Although closer to London by road than Dover, Portsmouth is a marginal source of revenue. The length of the Western Channel crossings makes the ferries far less productive. In the P. & O. Group Annual report of 1998, the Portsmouth ferry division's performance was described as 'still unsatisfactory', despite the success of a catamaran service to Cherbourg. Fortunes for Brittany Ferries have been hard too, with a generous French state subsidy making the difference between profit and loss.


Southampton

Always regarded as a great Atlantic liner terminal, Southampton retains its cruise ship business, though its container handling facility is it biggest trade. The Continental ferry industry began with the railway associated passenger boats to Le Havre, St. Malo, and the Channel Islands. These long crossings dwindled in the 1960's and British Rail opted to close them and convert the obsolete vessels to 'short sea' car ferries.

In 1964 the Norwegian entrepreneur, Otto Thoresen took the brave move to pick up the pieces and order three highly advanced drive through car ferries to serve Cherbourg and Le Havre. The Thoresen 'Vikings' provided passengers with comfortable sleeping accommodation and introduced novelties such as Scandinavian style Smorgasbord buffets. The enterprise was highly successful and a competitor was attracted to Southampton in 1968 in the form of Normandy Ferries. They offered their own purpose built Dragon and Leopard for a rival service to Le Havre. Later the firm made unprofitable attempts to run ferries to Northern Spain. Townsend Thoresen introduced two larger 'Super Viking' vessels in 1974, but a decade later moved to nearby Portsmouth. Soon after their rivals had departed, Normandy Ferries was taken over by Townsend Thoresen and Leopard was sold to Greece. Dragon was transferred to a Scotland/Northern Ireland route.

The absence of Cross Channel activity at Southampton lasted until 1991 when Stena Line decided to make a stab at the Western Channel market. They took St. Nicholas off the North Sea and relaunched her as Stena Normandy for their new service to Cherbourg. As a fast vessel, she could manage twice daily round trips, with crossings completed in less than five hours. This could match the rival Portsmouth route. The Stena Line operation made an initial impact but was doomed after fare slashing on the Dover Straits dragged their Southampton service into financial disaster. The charter fee for Stena Normandy became higher than the revenue she was generating and 1996 was to be her last season. It was a pity as she was a smart vessel, with spacious facilities and plentiful outside deck space. A cabaret act was provided in her terraced stern lounge to entertain passengers. Sadly, with passengers travelling for just one pound a head, it made no economical sense to continue. Southampton can now only offer ferries to Cowes on the Isle of Wight.


Poole

The attractive natural harbour at Poole in Dorset is the largest in the world, at least at high tide! Being of a very shallow nature, it was surprising that the inner confines of the harbour were chosen to inaugurate a Cross Channel ferry service.

Truckline was set up in 1973 using two very small freight vessels to carry lorries over to Cherbourg. It was immediately realised that much dredging would be required to allow the operation larger, more suitable tonnage. The Coutances and Purbeck were delivered in 1978 and facilitated much increased business. The first passenger ferry was a deployed on a summer seasonal service as of 1986.

Under the control of Brittany Ferries, Truckline saw the potential to develop the holiday trade and so Corbiére and Tregastel were operated together in 1989 to improve frequency. That year also saw the arrival of British Channel Island Ferries who operated the Havelet and Rozel to St. Peter Port (Guernsey) and St. Helier (Jersey). They had just ceased sailings from Portsmouth and Weymouth in a move to streamline their service.

With six ferries using the harbour, it appeared that Poole was entering a boom period. Although Weymouth was the closest port to Cherbourg and the Channel Islands, Poole had better access and larger freight handling space. All change occurred in 1992 when the massive Barfleur was delivered to replace the four smaller vessels within Truckline. The following year saw British Channel Island Ferries closed for business.

The St. Peter Port (Guernsey) and St. Helier (Jersey) connection was revived in 1997 when Condor Ferries introduced their catamaran, Condor Express.


Weymouth

The charming little harbour at Weymouth is now the least significant Channel ferry terminal. The quayside docks were developed to serve the Great Western Railway coming down from London Paddington through Castle Cary, Yeovil, and Dorchester. Trains would proceed along the tramway (which still exists) to meet passenger boats sailing to the Channel Islands and St. Malo.

Weymouth was the natural departure point for such destinations as it was the nearest possible port. The London and South Western Railway service from Waterloo was originally incidental, but now is the only direct train service to Weymouth from the capital. Rail connected passenger trade was highly lucrative in its hey day.

British Rail took delivery in the 1960's of the purpose built Caeserea and Sarnia to accommodate the numbers travelling to the Channel Islands. Their unusual names were in fact derived from the Latin names for Guernsey and Jersey. In 1974 the car ferry linkspan was opened at Weymouth.

The train business was dwindling in competition with air services and the future was to carry vehicle accompanied traffic. The least wanted Sealink fleet members ended up at Weymouth before being sold. This was not surprising considering the small size of the harbour which necessitates the reversing out of vessels in order to head away.

The diminutive Earl Godwin wound up car ferry sailings to the Channel Islands in 1986 after a disastrous season when passengers were sometimes outnumbered by crew members. The Earl Harold was retained to initiate seasonal sailings to Cherbourg. Although only capable of nineteen knots, she proved that France was within less than four hours of Weymouth. Unfortunately, the hopelessly cluttered streets providing access to the ferry hindered any serious amount of traffic from using the service. The Cherbourg sailings ceased in 1988.

British Channel Island Ferries chartered the former Lion of Dover/Boulogne fame, and named her Portelet after a bay in St. Helier (Jersey) to run a seasonal service from Weymouth during 1987 and 1988. She was replaced by Havelet when the company moved to Poole. Meanwhile, Condor Ferries were developing their high speed link to the Channel Islands using small hydrofoils. Their big breakthrough came with the delivery of a car carrying catamaran in 1993 which enabled them to steal the lion's share of the market from B. C. I. F. at Poole.

Condor deserted Weymouth in March 1997 in favour of Poole, but returned in May 1998 with a seasonal service to St. Peter Port (Guernsey) and St. Malo using Condor Vitesse. At the end of the summer, she stayed in a relief capacity, then the company decided to resume year-round services from Weymouth again.


Plymouth

Millbay Docks in Plymouth was the base for the original Brittany Ferries service which was inaugurated in 1973 to convey farm produce from the French village port of Roscoff. The second purpose built vessel for the route arrived in 1977 as Cornouailles. She was succeeded by a series of larger second hand ferries in the form of Benodet (which later became Corbiére), Tregastel, Quiberon, and Duc de Normandie.

The six hour passage is too long to facilitate two daily return crossings, and so the timetable is irregular. The Plymouth/Roscoff route is very much a secondary source of trade for Brittany Ferries, who reap most of their turnover from their Portsmouth based business. Nevertheless, it is the most westerly Channel crossing and draws upon a large amount of local usage in Brittany and the South West of England. It too has been affected though by price cutting on the short sea routes. People have been prepared to drive further out of their way in order to take advantage of bargain fares from Dover.

The twice weekly Plymouth/Santander crossing opened Northern Spain up to British holiday motorists when it was launched by Brittany Ferries in 1978. For many years it enjoyed a profitable monopoly of Spanish car ferry sailings, but this was threatened when P. & O. came over the horizon in 1993 with Pride of Bilbao, bigger and more impressive than the French flagged Val de Loire. In their defence, Brittany Ferries claimed that they offered the fastest route to Spain, a snip at just twenty four hours. P. & O.'s Portsmouth/Bilbao long haul took a day and a half.