Passenger-only ferry service will determine line’s future
I note that the future of the Island Line is in the news yet again ( RAIL 847)
All the articles on the Island Line I have read recently seem to miss the fundamental point that the history and future of the Island Line is inextricably linked with the Portsmouth Harbour station to Ryde Pier Head passenger-only ferry. The ferry service is the reason why the Island Line still exists.
In the early 1960s, BR wanted to close all the remaining Isle of Wight lines. But at that time, on summer Saturdays up to 5,000 passengers an hour could be passing through Ryde Pier Head, with a high percentage travelling to and from Sandown and Shanklin.
There was no way that the pier tramway, the IoW buses or the roads could have coped with these numbers, so the Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin line was reprieved and ‘modernised’.
Fast forward to today. Most visitors come to the IoW by car and vehicle ferry, not by train and passenger-only ferry. The maximum potential throughput at Ryde Pier Head is now 1,000 passengers per hour with the current two catamarans.
The buses and roads could probably cope with the Ryde Esplanade to Shanklin traffic if the Island Line were to close. But ferry passengers would still need to travel along the pier, and rail is the only public transport allowed on the pier. So, while the ferry operates, a means of public transport down the pier is essential.
It can therefore be seen that there is no point in any discussion on the future of the Island Line without consulting Wightlink regarding their future plans for the passenger ferry service. If Wightlink sees no long-term future for the passenger ferry service, the wisdom of spending large sums of money on the Island Line becomes very questionable.
Although I would love to see the Island Line continue and prosper, one has to be realistic as money for improvements could be limited in the current financial climate. There are a number of options:
If the ferry service were to cease, close all the Island Line (a low-cost option).
If the ferry service continues, close the Ryde Esplanade to Shanklin line but keep the pier railway as a pier tramway (a relatively low-cost option).
‘Modernise’ the line as heavy rail with replacement rolling stock and upgraded track, or convert to a light rail system. (this could be hard to justify financially, particularly if the ferry service were to close).
Only time will tell what actually happens, but time is now running out as the rolling stock and track are life expired.
Deryk Simpson, Bolton