The ferry company’s six ships on the English Channel transported 1,340,317 units of freight during the 12 month period – a 22 per cent year-on-year increase.

Both the third and fourth quarters set new records for quarterly freight volumes, as P&O Ferries provided an additional vessel and additional sailings on the Dover to Calais route. Freight comprises around two thirds of the company’s business.

Janette Bell, Commercial Director of P&O Ferries, said: “The cross-Channel ferry business is a vital strategic link in the transport infrastructure of north-western Europe and these numbers illustrate that hundreds of thousands of firms rely on our services to import and export goods.”

“We expect demand for cross-Channel transport to increase, driven by a rising population and the strength of the British economy. The vast majority of our freight customers are businesses transporting goods from continental Europe to Britain.”

“During a period when the media has been continuously writing about delays at the Channel tunnel, we have made it a priority to minimize dwell times for our customers by keeping a sixth ship in service on the route and maintaining a schedule of 58 sailings a day.”

The news follows a strong tourist performance by P&O Ferries during the peak summer season, with both July and August seeing the highest number of tourists travelling on the company’s Dover to Calais services since 2003.

P&O Ferries is a leading pan-European ferry operator, sailing on nine major routes between Britain, France, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Holland and Belgium. The company operates 20 vessels which carry more than 10 million passengers, 1.6 million cars and 2.2 million freight units every year.

ENDS

Contacts:             Dan Bridgett, Natalie Hardy & Natalie Hall

                                Tel: +44(0)1304 863833 (24 hours)            

Together with £15,000 contributed to equally by the Port of Dover, Dover Town Council and Dover District Council, this provides the funding required to deliver the project and will cover ongoing costs.

The trail will bring together a number of Dover’s heritage gems including the wonderfully preserved Dover Bronze Age Boat, extensive Roman town remains, Saxon, Norman and medieval religious institutions, Tudor, Georgian and Victorian fortifications, Jacobean domestic building as well as the Victorian and Edwardian harbour.  The trail will connect these assets plus other little known buildings, sites and monuments in both the town centre and Port areas.

The trail route would be self-guided, marked by permanent, bronze pavement markers, supported by a free trail guide and map, website and interactive app, which will both market the trail and give further detailed historical information and images, details of heritage attractions and tourist facilities in the town and their opening hours.

The grant application was submitted by The Dover Society on behalf of the Port and Community Forum of which it is member – the PCF was established in 2013 by the Port as an independent forum to provide a focal point for engagement and debate on issues of mutual interest such as local regeneration.  Some 20 key local organisations sit on the PCF and the funding was announced today at its latest meeting, aptly hosted at Cruise Terminal 1, the recently restored former Dover Marine Railway Station, a Grade II listed building which features in the trail.

The Forum adopted a Heritage Strategy to investigate ways to bring together the many heritage assets of the town and port to develop Dover as a tourist destination and to assist in the much needed regeneration of the area.

In January 2014, the PCF appointed a trail group including representatives from The Dover Society, Port of Dover, Dover Greeters, Dover Hoteliers, Big Local, English Heritage, White Cliffs Country Tourism Alliance, Dover District Council and Dover Town Council.   The group has been working ever since on the development of a heritage trail and funding to support it.

After nearly two years of determined work, the group finally has the funding to deliver the trail.

Derek Leach, Chairman of the Port and Community Forum and the Dover Society, said:

“Whilst many know that Dover has a long and interesting history, few are aware of what and where much of that history is located and of its richness. This applies to both its local residents and the millions of people who pass through the town every year, either en route for a ferry crossing or as a cruise passenger. The Port has also a large number of marina visitors during the summer months.  The trail aims to increase the number of visitors to the town and spending in Dover.”

Stuart McLeod, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund South East, said: “Thanks to National Lottery players, today’s investment will bring together more of the little-known parts of Dover’s heritage for people to discover, increasing the understanding of the port town and the role it has played in history for residents and visitors alike.”

Tim Waggott, Chief Executive, Port of Dover, said:

“These are truly exciting as well as pivotal times for Dover.  Whilst we take bold steps into the future, we want to celebrate the past and use it as a way to bring our community together, bring port and town together, bring visitors to Dover and reveal the heritage which binds us and identifies us.  This is a fantastic example of finding innovative way to improve connectivity through partnership working and what we can achieve by all working towards a shared vision.

Paul Watkins, Leader, Dover District Council, said:

“These are exciting times for Dover with many projects coming together to stimulate the local economy.  The St James development is attracting new retail and leisure investment with site clearance works well advanced.  Construction will start in the New Year.  Improving the public realm and connections between our wealth of heritage assets is a key aim of the Council.  I am delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund is supporting this exciting project to highlight the town’s heritage through a well-marked trail route which clearly guides people through the town’s fascinating history.”

The Right Worshipful the Town Mayor, Cllr Chris Precious, said:

“Creating a town trail combined with a website will greatly raise the profile, awareness and knowledge of local historical sites.  As we work to improve the appeal of Dover, such a trail will greatly support our collective work to change perceptions and reveal what Dover already has to offer as well as what it will have in future.”

With funding now in place, the aim is to launch the trail by 31 July 2016.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

• In-kind contributions (totalling £29,000 in value) have also been given to support the project:

–          Professional  design costs of the pavement markers, booklet and website graphics donated by Dover District Council;

–          Supervision of the pavement marker installation donated by Dover District Council;

–          Recruitment, human resource support and office accommodation for the part time Community Engagement Officer by Dover District Council; and (Richard this may have to change)

–          Project management, guidebook content and financial control volunteer time by Dover Society members

• About the Heritage Lottery Fund

From the archaeology under our feet to the historic parks and buildings we love, from precious memories and collections to rare wildlife, we use National Lottery players’ money to help people across the UK explore, enjoy and protect the heritage they care about.  www.hlf.org.uk.

• Photo (left to right): Paul Watkins – Leader, Dover District Council; George Jenkins – Chairman, Dover Harbour Board; Chris Precious – Dover Mayor; &  Derek Leach – Chairman of the Port and Community Forum and the Dover Society

The company transported 367,000 units of freight across the English Channel between July and September – a 30 per cent increase on the same period last year and the best single quarter since 2003.

September alone was the best single month for freight since 2003, with 129,500 units transported between Britain and France. The figure surpassed the previous monthly record (123,000) which was set in July this year.

Freight comprises around two-thirds of P&O Ferries’ business, with tourists accounting for one-third.

Helen Deeble, Chief Executive of P&O Ferries, said: “These figures reinforce the importance of the cross-Channel ferry industry to the hundreds of thousands of businesses which rely on the efficient transportation of goods between Britain and France.”

“This quarter has been unprecedented, with the strike by French seamen and the temporary closure of the port of Calais bringing major logistical challenges. I am very proud that everyone at P&O Ferries has risen to that challenge and helped to keep exceptional volumes of freight moving across the Channel.”

“Demand for cross-Channel transport is only going to increase, driven by a rising population and a recovering economy. We have increased the number of sailings we make between Dover and Calais to 58 a day and brought a sixth ship back into service on the route in order to make sure that we are best placed to meet that demand.”

The news follows a strong tourist performance in August, with the company carrying its highest monthly number of people across the Channel since August 2003.

P&O Ferries is a leading pan-European ferry operator, sailing on nine major routes between Britain, France, Ireland, Holland and Belgium. The company operates 20 vessels which carry more than 10 million passengers, 1.6 million cars and two million freight units every year.

ENDS

Contacts:             Dan Bridgett, Natalie Hardy, Natalie Hall & Val Holness

                                Tel: +44(0)1304 863833 (24 hours)  

P&O Ferries carried 1,177,053 people between Dover and Calais last month, a 2.5 per cent increase on the previous year and the highest monthly figure since August 2003.

The news follows a strong performance in July in which P&O Ferries carried more units of freight across the English Channel – 123,000 in total – than in any other month in its modern history.

The Dover-based company, which also operates routes across the North Sea and the Irish Sea, attributed the strong passenger numbers to its investment in a new class of super-ferry which has significantly enhanced capacity and tourists capitalising on the continuing economic recovery. Industrial action by French seamen which closed the port of Calais for several days during the peak season has not affected the upward trajectory.

Helen Deeble, Chief Executive of P&O Ferries, said: “This summer has been one of the most challenging ever for cross-Channel travel and I am very pleased that P&O Ferries has helped to keep tourists and freight moving between Britain and France in huge numbers.”

“We have been able to carry well over a million people in August because of our investment in the new Spirit-class of ships which have helped to transform our customers’ experience of cross-Channel travel. The Spirit of Britain and the Spirit of France are both capable of carrying 2,000 passengers, twice the capacity of a standard ferry, while offering a first class dining, leisure and retail experience.”

“We expect further busy periods during the half-term holiday and also the winter sports season, with a growing number of skiers choosing to drive to the Alps via one of our ferries rather than fly.”

P&O Ferries, which brought a sixth ship back into service on the English Channel in July in order to increase capacity, has also seen additional demand because of the well-publicised disruption at Eurotunnel. The company operates 58 sailings a day between Dover and Calais.

ENDS

Contacts:             Dan Bridgett, Natalie Hardy, Natalie Hall & Val Holness

                                Tel: +44(0)1304 863833 (24 hours)