Driverless freight the way ahead for ferry companies post-Covid
The tradition of lorry drivers taking their vehicles cross-channel from Plymouth’s ferry port may never come back. William Telford reports on a change in transport
AGROWING number of haulage companies are shipping goods across the English Channel using unaccompanied trailers and the trend is set to increase, says Brittany Ferries.
The French-owned company, which sails out of Portsmouth and Plymouth, says more and more goods are being moved by driverless loads at the ports it serves on the western Channel in France and the UK.
Brexit-related red tape and additional costs have hit the logistics industry, with the need for drivers heading to the Continent to test negative for Covid-19 compounding issues for hauliers.
All ferry companies have reported reduced freight volumes in January as a consequence of Brexit fears and stockpiling by companies.
But while volumes are low, Brittany Ferries said the proportion of unaccompanied units is already much higher than in previous years.
Galicia is Brittany Ferries’ newest RoPax (roll-on/roll-off passenger) vessel, operating between Santander in Spain and Portsmouth.
Since sailings began in early December, around 40% of Galicia’s freight has been unaccompanied trailers.
“Things like negative Covid tests for drivers are certainly helping drive the trend for unaccompanied loads,” said Simon Wagstaff, Brittany Ferries’ freight director.
“However, there are other financial benefits in going driverless. We know of one large haulage operation in Ireland, for example, that has organised reciprocal arrangements with another in Spain, dropping off and picking up trailers for each other. That’s a costeffective way of doing business.”
Further evidence comes from the workhorse of the Brittany Ferries fleet, Pelican. This freight-only ship has been operating since 2016, connecting Bilbao with Poole.
Designed primarily for unaccompanied trailers, Pelican’s fill rates have risen so significantly that it is now the best performing freight ship in the Brittany Ferries fleet.
“Of course, Pelican is an extremely versatile vessel which can take out-ofgauge shipments as well as unaccompanied units,” Mr Wagstaff said.
“It’s this flexibility in our fleet, combined with our ability to accommodate unaccompanied loads throughout our extensive route network, that makes Brittany Ferries an attractive prospect for the year ahead.
“We are pleased too that freight is flowing well through our ports, without the queues that some forecast at the start of the year.”
Brittany Ferries began as a freightonly operation in 1973. The first ship Kerisnel, was a converted Israeli tankcarrier.
It had been chartered by French farmers to carry produce like cauliflowers and artichokes to the UK, a market that opened with the country’s entry into the EEC.
However, the company quickly adapted. It turned to carrying passenger traffic, as well as freight, when it became clear the biggest export market was for British holiday makers visiting Brittany and then Normandy.
The company says it still moves quickly when opportunities arise. It opened a sea route connecting Ireland with Spain for the first time in 2018, predominantly for freight traffic.
More recently it has brought forward the opening of a Rosslare-Cherbourg connection, as Irish, French and Spanish hauliers seek an alternative to the UK land-bridge, with the cost, time and administrative burden that this now brings.