PCCMPH
Related Articles
A freight ferry service between Sheppey and France has been suspended at short notice.
Operator DFDS halted service on Saturday due to unnamed “operational difficulties”.
The last departure from Sheerness Docks was Friday at 11am.
An announcement on the company’s website said: “Due to operational difficulties, the unaccompanied service between Calais and Sheerness will be suspended from Saturday 15th January until further notice, with the last departure being from Sheerness at 11.00am on Friday, January 14.”
He promised to introduce a temporary alternative service between Dover and France, exclusively for shipping companies from Calais to Sheerness, to “underline our continued commitment to our valued customers”.
He added: “We take this opportunity to remind you that when shipping through the port of Dover, port specific ancillary charges normally apply (port tax and demurrage after 24 hours dwell).
“We sincerely hope that the unfortunate situation we are currently facing will be rectified and DFDS Sheerness unaccompanied services will be restored very soon.”
The daily route, which carried trailers of unaccompanied trucks, was launched to much fanfare in July. The vessel, Maxine, can carry up to 165 trailers.
Wayne Bullen, director of freight sales at DFDS, said at the time: ‘Sheerness promises to be a superb ‘partner port’ with an ambitious plan to grow its services over the next decade.
The trailers are dropped off on one side of the Channel, loaded onto the ferry, then unloaded on the other side by a different driver.
