Transmanche Ferries
Encyclopedia
Transmanche Ferries is a ferry
company that operates the Newhaven
- Dieppe
route across the English Channel
.
, decided to concentrate on that company's primary route of Dover
- Calais
. The last P&O Stena vessel on the route, the Stena Cambria, undertook her last sailing on 31 January 1998. No vessel replaced the Stena Cambria service until a high speed passenger service was instituted by Hoverspeed
using SuperSeaCat Two in April 1999, however this service ended in 2004.
Despite the Hoverspeed passenger service, a conventional passenger-vehicle freight service was desired for the Dieppe - Newhaven route. Compiled of public bodies, including the General Council of Seine-Maritime
, the towns of Dieppe
and Fécamp
as well as three Chambers of Commerce, Transmanche Ferries re-opened the route early in 2001 with the chartered Sardinia Vera.
. With a capacity of just under 2,000 passengers and 43 lorries she provided an adequate starting point for the company. At 120m long and with a draught of 5.5m she fits into both ports perfectly. The company simply re-used the current livery of Corsica ferries and since then it has stuck, with their new ferries also painted in the same colour scheme, with the trademark large green ‘T’ in an identically coloured circle.
The decision was then taken in 2002 to purchase another ship to boost the amount of crossings that Transmanche were able to offer. The Saga Star was purchased, re-painted and named as Dieppe. At 147m long she was a little too big for the Port of Newhaven and therefore had to reverse out before turning around the pier head instead of swinging inside the harbour as Sardinia Vera did. Although with a slightly larger vehicle capacity, she does not have the facilities of Sardinia Vera, but is just as suited to the freight market.
Soon however, the decision was made to order two new-builds specifically for the route. Constructed at H.J Barreras in Vigo
, Spain
, the Côte D’Albatre entered service in March 2006. At 142 metres long and with a draught of 5.7m she is the maximum sized ferry that Newhaven can currently safely accommodate. With a modern, luxury interior she gave a well needed boost to the company’s profile as well as attracting day trippers that were lost when Hoverspeed ended their SuperSeaCat service in 2004. Her sister vessel "Seven Sisters" followed that same year.
Sardinia Vera was returned to her owners, Corsica Ferries following the introduction of Côte D’Albatre. The identical Seven Sisters joined this vessel in Autumn 2006 albeit with several modifications. At this time Dieppe was sold and is now sailing for Polferries
as the Baltiva.
In the company leaflet found on the "Seven Sisters", it was stated that the "Côte D’Albatre" is currently being used for the Portsmouth - Le Harve route which LD Lines serve. The "Seven Sisters" therefore is the only ferry Transmanche use and it currently makes 2 crossings between Newhaven - Dieppe a day.
Transmanche have attempted to serve other routes in the past, between Newhaven and Le Havre and between Dieppe and Dover however neither of these proved successful.
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
company that operates the Newhaven
Newhaven, East Sussex
Newhaven is a town in the Lewes District of East Sussex in England. It lies at the mouth of the River Ouse, on the English Channel coast, and is a ferry port for services to France.-Origins:...
- Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
route across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
History
Transmanche Ferries was formed after the previous operator of this route, P&O Stena LineP&O Stena Line
P&O Stena Line was formed in 1998 after the merger of P&O European Ferries Ltd and the Dover and Newhaven operations of Stena Line.-History:...
, decided to concentrate on that company's primary route of Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
- Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
. The last P&O Stena vessel on the route, the Stena Cambria, undertook her last sailing on 31 January 1998. No vessel replaced the Stena Cambria service until a high speed passenger service was instituted by Hoverspeed
Hoverspeed
Hoverspeed, formed in 1981 by the merger of Seaspeed and Hoverlloyd, was a ferry company that operated on the English Channel from 1981 until 2005....
using SuperSeaCat Two in April 1999, however this service ended in 2004.
Despite the Hoverspeed passenger service, a conventional passenger-vehicle freight service was desired for the Dieppe - Newhaven route. Compiled of public bodies, including the General Council of Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime is a French department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre...
, the towns of Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
and Fécamp
Fécamp
Fécamp is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:Fécamp is situated in the valley of the river Valmont, at the heart of the Pays de Caux, on the Albaster Coast...
as well as three Chambers of Commerce, Transmanche Ferries re-opened the route early in 2001 with the chartered Sardinia Vera.
Fleet
When Transmanche started, they chartered the 1975 built Sardinia Vera from Corsica FerriesCorsica Ferries
Corsica Ferries and Sardinia Ferries are marketing names used by Corsica Ferries, a France-based ferry company that operates traffic to and from the islands of Corsica and Sardinia...
. With a capacity of just under 2,000 passengers and 43 lorries she provided an adequate starting point for the company. At 120m long and with a draught of 5.5m she fits into both ports perfectly. The company simply re-used the current livery of Corsica ferries and since then it has stuck, with their new ferries also painted in the same colour scheme, with the trademark large green ‘T’ in an identically coloured circle.
The decision was then taken in 2002 to purchase another ship to boost the amount of crossings that Transmanche were able to offer. The Saga Star was purchased, re-painted and named as Dieppe. At 147m long she was a little too big for the Port of Newhaven and therefore had to reverse out before turning around the pier head instead of swinging inside the harbour as Sardinia Vera did. Although with a slightly larger vehicle capacity, she does not have the facilities of Sardinia Vera, but is just as suited to the freight market.
Soon however, the decision was made to order two new-builds specifically for the route. Constructed at H.J Barreras in Vigo
Vigo
Vigo is a city and municipality in north-west Spain, in Galicia, situated on the ria of the same name on the Atlantic Ocean.-Population:...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, the Côte D’Albatre entered service in March 2006. At 142 metres long and with a draught of 5.7m she is the maximum sized ferry that Newhaven can currently safely accommodate. With a modern, luxury interior she gave a well needed boost to the company’s profile as well as attracting day trippers that were lost when Hoverspeed ended their SuperSeaCat service in 2004. Her sister vessel "Seven Sisters" followed that same year.
Sardinia Vera was returned to her owners, Corsica Ferries following the introduction of Côte D’Albatre. The identical Seven Sisters joined this vessel in Autumn 2006 albeit with several modifications. At this time Dieppe was sold and is now sailing for Polferries
Polferries
Polferries is the largest Polish ferry operator.The Polish Baltic Shipping Company was established on 31 January 1976 as a state-owned shipping company. Under the operating name Polferries, the company runs ferry routes across the Baltic Sea between Poland and Scandinavia.In 1996 Polferries...
as the Baltiva.
In the company leaflet found on the "Seven Sisters", it was stated that the "Côte D’Albatre" is currently being used for the Portsmouth - Le Harve route which LD Lines serve. The "Seven Sisters" therefore is the only ferry Transmanche use and it currently makes 2 crossings between Newhaven - Dieppe a day.
Transmanche have attempted to serve other routes in the past, between Newhaven and Le Havre and between Dieppe and Dover however neither of these proved successful.