I have just read a report that a new ferry service is set to start up next year between Rosyth and Zeebrugge.It will be for freight primarily but hopefully cars will be able to travel after the service becomes established.The crossing is estimated to be around 20 hours.
I remember a similar service about 10 (?) years ago which lasted for a while .It could maybe attract some of the former Hull ferry traffic.Time will tell.
Gidders:
I have just read a report that a new ferry service is set to start up next year between Rosyth and Zeebrugge.It will be for freight primarily but hopefully cars will be able to travel after the service becomes established.The crossing is estimated to be around 20 hours.
I remember a similar service about 10 (?) years ago which lasted for a while .It could maybe attract some of the former Hull ferry traffic.Time will tell.
Wasn’t it superfast that did it a few years ago . Didn’t last long as I remember
chester1:
Gidders:
I have just read a report that a new ferry service is set to start up next year between Rosyth and Zeebrugge.It will be for freight primarily but hopefully cars will be able to travel after the service becomes established.The crossing is estimated to be around 20 hours.
I remember a similar service about 10 (?) years ago which lasted for a while .It could maybe attract some of the former Hull ferry traffic.Time will tell.Wasn’t it superfast that did it a few years ago . Didn’t last long as I remember
Yes, it was Superfast.
They were given a grant for 2 years, to get the route established. 2 ships, 1 leaving each port around 5pm every evening and arriving around 11am the next morning.
After the grant period ended, Superfast asked for the grant to be extended, they were refused. So they put their prices up, to compensate.
Unfortunately they had failed to do their homework when bidding for the initial contract. The increased prices for the Rosyth to Zeebrugge crossings were unrealistically higher than Hull to Zeebrugge, for hauliers. It was cheaper to pay the extra wages and fuel costs of driving to Hull and crossing to Zeebrugge from there.
Time-wise it was also shorter, but drivers were still getting a well over the required rest period, and departing Zeebrugge at a much more useful time.
Superfast reduced to 1 ship, sailing alternate days Rosyth - Zeebrugge one night, Zeebrugge - Rosyth the next.
They then further reduced the service by putting a slower BlueStar ship on the crossing, instead of a Superfast.
This was then further reduced to a freight ship, with facilities for 12 drivers. The crossing was now 20 hours minimum, mainly drop trailers.
Eventually DFDS bought that freighter. It sank, or went on fire, or both. I can’t remember.
No more crossings since.
I used Superfast ferries on that crossing, when it was new. Very nice boats.
I also used the BlueStar ferry. Also quite a nice boat
Thankfully I was never on the freighter.
If the new service is a freighter, it won’t take cars/passengers. 12 drivers accompanying their own freight is the max allowed. This is for Hazardous goods rules.
The ferry can take almost any hazardous goods with 12 accompanying freight drivers. More than 12, there are greater restrictions on what hazardous goods can be carried.
If it’s a passenger ferry, it will be able to take cars and passengers, as well as accompanied freight, from the start.
Going by the last attempt, freight crossings will have to be realistically priced.
Freight hauliers won’t pay more than it will cost them in fuel and wages and a Hull crossing.
Especially not for a 20 hour departure to arrival time.
Freight is the ferries bread and butter. It is a steady, constant demand. If freight charges are too high, there’ll be limited take up.
Cars and passengers are the jam on the bread and butter. You need the bread and butter to make a jam sandwich.
Also, drivers will no longer accept 4 to a cabin. Superfast and BlueStar allocated 4 drivers to a 4 berth cabin, we then asked to be re-allocated to a single cabin after departure. There was a limited number of single berths available, depending on the number of car passengers. Once all the available berths were allocated, the remainder were in a cabin with 3 other strangers.
P&O and Stena ferries don’t expect drivers to share a cabin now, so whoever starts the new Rosyth crossing needs to be aware of this also.
The article i read was a bit vague.The service will be operated by DFDS initially for freight but hoping to attract passengers later.It describes the route as Rosyth to Antwerp Bruges.Do they mean Zeebrugge ?
I believe the former service was discontinued after a fire on board ship.
Years ago i remember Schiaffino being the service of choice for carrying any hazardous chemical known to man.
Gidders:
… Years ago i remember Schiaffino being the service of choice for carrying any hazardous chemical known to man.
Spot-on, I remember it well. 