Former SeaFrance ferries put to sea

TWO ferries formerly owned by the defunct ferry company SeaFrance have taken to the sea again under the name of a new company, My Ferry Link.

The Berlioz and Rodin, two of the three ferries of the SeaFrance fleet, this morning restarted a Dover to Calais service.

Each will be running four return journeys a day. However a My Ferry Link spokesman said today’s crossings were mostly for freight, with passenger ones however set to start imminently.

“We are starting operations to get the ships into service, and took a few casual arrivals as passengers, but we are waiting for the final clearance from the banks for our payments system so as to be able to take bookings through a website which should be up-and-running later today at My Ferry Link.”
Operator My Ferry link has been set up by a cooperative of former SeaFrance workers and it is leasing the ships under the French flag from Eurotunnel, which now owns them.

The first crossing, by the Berlioz, left Calais for Dover this morning at 5.30, restarting a service that SeaFrance stopped in November last year. The Rodin was also expected to make its first crossing under the new My Ferry Link colours.

A third ferry, the Nord-Pas-de-Calais, mainly carrying freight, will start service in the autumn.

My Ferry Link is employing 400 people, almost all former employees of SeaFrance.

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Photo: Sébastien Torond