Plans progress for new ferry service to England

PROPOSALS which could result in a passenger ferry service between Swansea and the south-west of England are being taken forward and might lead to a non-binding agreement, according to the leader of Swansea council.

It’s still early days, but Cllr Rob Stewart said a working group has been set up and that councils on both sides of the Bristol Channel were looking into clean energy propulsion systems for any future route.

Cllr Stewart’s written update was in response to a question by councillors Francesca O’Brien and Brigitte Rowlands, who asked what was happening.

On the working group, Cllr Stewart said: “This expert-led group would examine a range of key factors including but not limited to requirements of the terminals and those of the craft which would potentially operate across the route.” But he said progress had been limited due to the ill-health of the working group co-ordinator.

The Swansea Labour leader said the ferry proposal would have to contribute to the council’s pledge to be “net zero” by 2030, hence the clean energy discussions. He said further meetings with councils across the Bristol Channel were being arranged “with the intention of developing a scope and memorandum of understanding for the project” a non-binding statement of serious intent – by the end of March.

Cllr Stewart publicised the idea of a hydrogen-powered ferry service linking Swansea and the south-west of England three weeks before last year’s local government elections. “This would be a massive boost for tourism and business – to think you could cut your travel time to Devon and Cornwall by half, and of course it would have environmental benefits too: taking cars off the road and introducing green-powered ferries,” he said at the time.

A Bristol Channel ferry service has been proposed before. A catamaran capable of taking 360 passengers was planned by a company called Severn Link, with trips taking 50 minutes between Swansea and Ilfracombe. It was hoped that the vessel would launch in 2010, but it didn’t materialise.