The Peoples’ Ferry is the nickname that has become attached to the new freight & passenger ferry service operating between Ringaskiddy (Co. Cork, Ireland) and Swansea (Wales). This new service, (run by Fastnet Line Ltd. using the cruiseferry MV Julia) is wholly owned by a co-operative of small investors from West Cork, County Kerry, Ireland, South Wales, the UK and around the world.
This website will tell the long and heartwarming story behind the Peoples’s Ferry, the grass-roots campaign which ran from April 2008 to February 2010, and provide up-to-date news about the Co-op, and Fastnet Line.
The four-year interruption of the service has made life difficult for business and tourist travellers on both sides of the Irish Sea - but the new route is expected to be popular with many people who are attracted by the leisurely overnight sailings and the prospect of saving nearly 400 miles of unnecessary driving on each round trip.
Special thanks are due to Noreen O’Donovan (from Limerick) for her amazingly epic limerick all about the Julia.... read it here!
Cork - Swansea Ferry - WeddingDates.ie Wife Carrying Team 26th June 2010
Not sure what this is all about - but they look to be having a great time! Follow their exploits on www.weddingdates.ie/wifecarrying
On-board the inaugural sailing of the Julia 10th March 2010
Oh happy day! Watch the Peoples’ Ferry arrive in Cork Harbour in this video clip from RTE News - 25/9/09
Many thanks to the folks at RTE - particularly Tom, and to Mark in Schull for his usual video magic.
what’s news?
7/8/10 Fastnet Line Special Offers!
7/8/10 ‘People’s Ferry’ bucks the trend! Southern Star
While visitor numbers to Ireland from the UK continue to show a decline in the latest Tourism Ireland figures released last week, the re-instatement of the Swansea to Cork ferry route by Fastnet Line, has seen the impact cushioned by the runaway success of the cruiseferry MV Julia this summer. more
12/7/10 Cork Artist presents painting to Fastnet Line
Cork artist Pat O'Dwyer presenting his painting of the Fastnet Rock to Paul O'Brien from Fastnet Line at the 3rd annual Coast Art Collective art show in Ballinspittle.
The show runs from 10th - 18th July and features more than 20 local artists and craftspeople - as part of Kinsale Arts Week. www.coastartcollective.com
Fastnet Line have kindly provided a Draw prize of free return tickets for two adults, car and accommodation on-board the Julia - simply visit the exhibition in the Parish Hall, Ballinspittle and sign the visitors’ book to enter the free draw
Photo Noreen O'Callaghan
24/6/10 - The People's Ferry: reducing emissions by buying a ship Paul Miles in The Ecologist
“How a discontinued ferry service between Swansea and Cork was reborn when locals pooled money and resources...and bought their own ship” more
08/5/10 West Cork Tourism update Carol Gilbert - Southern Star
The West Cork Tourism Co-op, which owns Fastnet Line, has been running a series of information meetings - Carol Gilbert reports from the Skibbereen meeting. more
24/4/10 Time for a sea change? Catherine Mack - Irish Times
ETHICAL TRAVELLER: Catherine Mack on responsible tourism
I WAS ONE of 10 foot passengers on Fastnet Line’s new Swansea to Cork ferry three weeks ago. And three of the other nine were my family. Then a volcano erupted – and, with it, tens of thousands of travel plans. On our return journey we were among 500 foot passengers, most in suits. The ferry staff were in shock. more
20/4/10 -Little volcano’ means big business for ferry firms By Dan Buckley - Irish Examiner "IT’S mad busy," says Margaret Hegarty, spokesperson for Fastnet Line, which runs the Cork to Swansea ferry service. "It hasn’t stopped all day. It’s amazing what one little volcano can do." more
17/4/10 New ferry route between Swansea and Cork by Catherine Mack www.greentraveller.co.uk A nice positive write-up on the Julia experience - more
15/04/10 Ash Cloud brings further problems for Cardiff Airport BBC News A volcanic ash cloud emanating from Iceland will keep Cardiff airport closed until at least 1300 BST on Friday, authorities have said. more (But Fastnet Line keep sailing!)
13/04/10 Campaign Newsletter - April 2010 - Now we are two - Special Offers ..and Adrian’s guilty secret is revealed! more
10/4/10 - The Swansea-Cork ferry route is back By Libby Purves - The Times
“Libby Purves takes a slow boat to Ireland saving 380 miles’ driving, and enjoys a cabin and a fine Irish breakfast” more
10/04/2010 - “First Journey aboard the Julia” By Nora Strong (Blow-in) - Southern Star more
30th March 2010 - We are sailing — again! By: FIONA AUDLEY - Irish Post
“ANCHORS are well and truly away for the reinstated Swansea to Cork sailing service, as Fastnet Line’s MV Julia commandeers the waves with a cargo of locals, tourists and businesspeople who are delighted to be back on the water.
Following the inaugural sailing of the lofty vessel this month, The Irish Post ventured onto the ship for an evening crossing to Cork and found a bustling mix of passengers, crew and even canines, enjoying the delights of a ship which has something for everybody”. more
A great piece of positive reporting from Fiona - thanks! - we like positive! <g>
29 March 2010 - SOLD OUT SIGNS FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS WEEK ON NEW CORK SWANSEA FERRY.(Cork 96FM)
“Very encouraging bookings for the Easter holidays”
Fastnet Line, the operators of the new Cork / Swansea ferry say the service will have the 'sold out' sign up for the first time this week, less than a month after first putting to sea. The 'Julia' is set to carry a full complement of passengers, cars and trucks into the South West region for the Easter break, which the company says is well ahead of their expectations for early bookings..
Chairman, Conor Buckley says there's been a great response... The 'Julia' hit the headlines for the wrong reasons, when a series of procedural and technical glitches caused cancellations and delays to some of her early sailings.. Ships Captain, Ivan Walsh, says while none of the issues were remotely serious in themselves, the hold-ups were bitterly disappointing..
27th March - Fastnet Line to receive ‘significant’ funding By Jackie Keogh - Southern Star
The Tanaiste Mary Coughlan has informed Senator Denis O’Donovan that The Fastnet Line is to receive ‘significant’ funding sanctioned by Enterprise Ireland. The funding, which is believed to be in the region of €1.5 million and of a commercial nature, will allow the ferry service from Cork to Swansea to trade throughout the upcoming tourism season and well into next year. more
18th March - Thumbs up for ‘Julia’ despite setbacks on inaugural voyage By Leo McMAHON - Southern Star - Saturday March 20th, 2010
Despite the technical hitches, the delays and tides of misfortune, the vast majority of passengers who made the historic first scheduled voyage from Ringaskiddy to Swansea last weekend on board Fastnet Line’s ‘M.V. Julia’ expressed themselves well satisfied with the ferry. more
16th March - Update from the West Cork Tourism Co-op
“Shareholder Update Tuesday 16th March 2010 As you know - Julia commenced her Swansea-Cork sailings on 10th March - which of course we are delighted with. You are also probably aware that, despite the thorough checks and maintenance that Julia went through both in Cork and Swansea - the initial sailings have suffered from some mechanical problems - which was very unfortunate. We suspended two sailings over the weekend in order to rectify these issues and we thought that you should be aware of the precise details of these problems.
Paul O’Brien, Co-op General Manager travelled on the sailings from Cork to Swansea on Thursday 11th March and the return from Swansea to Cork on the 12th March. Both of these sailings were significantly delayed.
On the outward sailing one of the two starboard engines developed a problem, and, while the cause at that time was unknown, the ship was stopped while a tug came out from Cork as a precautionary measure. The sailing was resumed after an hour, but the delay meant that the ferry missed the tide in Swansea and she had to wait to enter the port, so she did not reach her berth in Swansea until 12.30 p.m. on Friday. The fault was subsequently found to be an electronic problem in a governor on the engine and was rectified for the journey back to Cork.
Julia was loaded without any problem on Friday night for the return journey, but when the ramp was retracted and folded there was a failure which meant that it was unable to be locked in place. Fastnet Line engineers worked to fix the problem but were unable to do so in time to catch the tide on the way out from Swansea. The problem was traced to an electronic control of the hydraulic system and was also repaired before the crossing commenced on the next available tide which was 1 a.m. Saturday (13th March).
The crossing was made in good conditions on four engines and we made good time. However, during the crossing a fault developed in the pitch control on one of the two propellers. The propeller use was unaffected but the pitch control is used under different load conditions and sea states and is also used when berthing. Again this fault was traced to an electronic control which has now been repaired. The fault however was not repaired in time for the Saturday night sailing and so two further sailings on Saturday and Sunday were cancelled. Conor Buckley, Chairman and Padraig Fleming (founder member of the Co-Op), were due to travel on Saturday night and were able to assist our customers affected by the cancelled Saturday night sailing (who were offered free transport to Cork and return journeys via an alternative ferry company).The Julia has been out for sea trials on Monday 15th and Tuesday 16th March and with no further problems is sailing on schedule today Tuesday.
The Committee of the Co-Op held its weekly meeting on board the Julia on Monday night, 15th March and received reports from CEO, Tom Barrett and Operations Manager, Owen Barry to discuss recent events. While disappointed with the missed sailings and adverse publicity, we are heartened by the degree of support for the service expressed by the very people who have been affected. The committee plan to have a presence on board each sailing for the next few weeks to help with the bedding in of the service and to speak with passengers to know and understand first hand any issues which might arise
On a positive note - we are hearing reports from B&B and Hotel owners in West Cork that suggest that their booking for the 2010 season are already some 30% up on last season - with many potential visitors citing the new ferry service as a major factor in their holiday plans. We are confident that, with this initial bedding-in period out of the way, Julia will be able to operate to schedule and deliver the kind of service that we all expect.”
15th March 16:40 - Julia on sea-trials Julia is currently completing a brief sea-trial and is heading back to Ringaskiddy. She is expected to sail tomorrow night (Tuesday) for Swansea on-schedule.
15th March - On a positive note.. This independent review was posted to the Irish Ferries Enthusiasts online forum -makes for encouraging reading.
“I travelled out with Julia on her maiden voyage from Cork Thursday night and back on Friday night. Outside of the technical issues that led to delays (which for some of us was good news as we got to spend extra time on board which is always a pleasure on that ship) I must say that both ship and crew performed quite well, onboard facilities on Julia are absolutely fantastic and I look forward to seeing them in full operational capacity in the peak season , the crew are also very friendly and very efficient and when the service is refined a little and the bugs ironed out it will without a doubt be the best way to travel between Ireland and the UK. It is frustrating to see the company having technical difficulties that are leading to delays and cancellations so early on , but as said elsewhere its better to have them now and get them sorted out sooner rather than later. I must also give quick mention to how well Fastnet Line has been dealing with the delays and cancelations , they have done very well in providing alternative travel for those affected by cancellations , the even transferred foot passengers to their onward destinations in the UK by hired in Coach via Rosslare and those who needed to return asap also were accommodated via Rosslare so no-one was left stranded , only slightly delayed , on the crossings that were delayed there was no shortage of complimentary tea , coffee , alcohol , food , even full meals thrown in , and all passengers with pullman seats were upgraded to cabins , so in spite of the delay everyone was comfortable and the majority of people were simply enjoying what they considered to be an extended cruise <g> so in spite of it all a good time was had by all. I look forward to seeing the service in full flight once it the bugs are worked out , its a great ship with a great crew providing a great service , I believe it will do very well in the long term”. (User ‘Collision-course’ 7:45pm Sunday 14/3/10)
15th March - Fastnet apologises for Swansea-Cork ferry delays - Irish Times FASTNET LINE has apologised to its customers for inconvenience caused over the weekend following delays and cancellations on its new Swansea-Cork ferry route. The company cancelled its scheduled sailings over the weekend due to technical difficulties on board the MV Julia. more
Update 13th March - 10pm Julia is currently berthed in Ringaskiddy, and will sail again to Swansea early next week. In the meantime engineers will be working round-the-clock to resolve the technical issues that have caused delays in her first week’s service. More news as we get it - passengers affected by this change to the planned schedule are asked to contact Fastnet Line
Update 11th March - 0930am Julia is berthed at Ringaskiddy - she will sail for Swansea this evening. For bookings / schedules etc see www.fastnetline.com
And some great photos of Julia loading in Swansea on 10th March for her inaugural Swansea-Cork crossing here.
Update 10th March - 06.00 p.m. ~ from Fastnet Line “The Julia has now left Swansea dock and is currently approaching the ferry terminal to board its first passengers bound for Cork at 21.50 hours tonight”.
What great news for Fastnet Line, everybody who has worked so hard to get to this day, everybody who is going to travel aboard this great ship - and for business and tourist interests both sides of the Irish Sea.
- 14/2/10 New ferry service defies odds to shatter passenger targets - Sunday Independent - 2/2/10 Ferry prepares for Irish Sea link - BBC Online News! - 28/1/10 City invests €200,000 in ferry - Cork Independent - 26/1/10 New ferry service has bookings ahead of launch - Irishtimes
7/1/10 Paul O’Brien hits the airwaves! Listen to this great interview with Paul O’Brien (General Manager of the Co-op) on Derek Mooney’s RTE Radio1 afternoon show... I’ve always said that Paul’s got a great face for radio! <g>...
This video is in two parts - simply click the box at the end of Part 1 to see Part 2 Thanks a million to Mark the video magician.
when’s it all happening?
- MV Julia - the People’s Ferry is now sailing on her regular schedule (6 sailings a week in the off-peak season - 8 sailings a week in the summer).
- there are still some great opportunities to invest in the People’s Ferry and share in the success - see the Fastnet Line website for more information
- two Ham Radio ‘Special Event’ stations (EI2GBW and GB2EI) are operating, from Ireland and Swansea respectively, until the end of March - to celebrate the restoration of this historic service - more details
