From Monday 13th July 2020, all passengers travelling on both Wightlink’s and Red Funnel’s car ferry services will be asked to leave their vehicles after embarkation and spend the journey in the passenger lounges or outside sundeck – with a couple of exceptions.
An agreement with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to allow people to stay in their cars was made on a temporary basis, and on account of low passenger numbers at the beginning of the pandemic.
Wightlink customers will be directed to leave their vehicles with effect from Monday. When Wightlink’s Lymington-Yarmouth route resumes on Friday 17th July, passengers will also vacate their vehicles after embarkation and spend the crossing in the lounges.
Red Funnel say the transition back to standard vehicle sailings will come in 2 phases. The first, effective Monday 13th Jul,y will see the 15:00 departure from Southampton and the 16:30 departure from East Cowes revert to standard crossings. The 21:00 departure from Southampton and 22:30 departure from East Cowes will remain as ‘stay in vehicle’ sailings until 31st July, with all crossings returning to the original format from 1st August 2020.
Everyone over the age of 11 will have to wear face coverings during the journey as this is a legal requirement on public transport.
Wightlink Chief Executive Keith Greenfield says:
“We made the decision to ask customers to vacate their vehicles because our spacious passenger lounges are the safest and most comfortable places for people to stay during their crossing.
“More people are now crossing the Solent with Wightlink following the Government’s relaxation of non-essential travel and need to use the lounge facilities onboard.
Article continues below this advertisement “Wightlink has operated ferries on the Portsmouth-Fishbourne route throughout the pandemic and staff have extensive experience in operating safely. There is plenty of room in our lounges for customers to find a place to sit while keeping a social distance from other people. Cafés will be open on most sailings and you’re allowed to take off your face covering to eat and drink.
“Ships are cleaned frequently and to high standards, hand sanitisers are available and there are facilities for customers to wash their hands in all internal passenger lounges.”
Fran Collins, CEO of Red Funnel, says:
“With the government withdrawing its advice to shield from 1 August 2020, now is the right time for us to make changes to our ‘stay in vehicle’ crossings and move closer to resuming our usual operations. We hope that by giving customers as much notice as possible this will benefit our passengers and prepare them for the changes.
“We have put a lot of measures in place to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our passengers, including reducing our overall capacity to enable social distancing. We want to emphasise that passengers should feel safe to travel on our ferries and we have all of the provisions in place to welcome them back on board safely.”
This is vague.
What about adults that also have exemption from wearing face masks?
Then they have exemption as well – it’s not that hard.
What are the ‘couple of exceptions’?
I hope the vulnerable are still allowed to stay in their cars. A lot need to go to mainland hospitals for treatment. Having unmasked children running around is a big risk for them. And don’t get me started on the messy eaters.
It’s always been when the kids go back to school you see a big spike of people at work getting bugs. The schools are a good transmission vector between families. Anyone who has kids will know this.
This has nothing to do with safety but everything to do with selling refreshments
Yeah more greed from them losing out in there over priced refreshments. lol.
And before i get bad comments i am not a snowflake.
And i would much rather stay in car like the old times when it was a choice.
Think I would rather stay in my car when crossing over to Yarmouth from Lymington I’m a bag of nerves already & just don’t want to take any risks as it’s been said this deadly virus is still out there & you just dont know who is carrying it
Are they going to restrict the amount of passengers? If not I am mystified by the reasoning that there is ‘plenty of space’ to social distance on a busy Red Funnel car ferry. Anyone who has travelled on a full or nearly full ferry knows you often have to share a seating area with strangers, or even sit on the floor. Also the queues to get on and off the passenger decks and to the toilets are quite tightly packed.
So true Mandy. Just look at the photo for this story. Crammed on the decks and at the windows. 😀
Is this the safest way to travel based on evidence of airborne transmission? Especially when inside. Children under 11? I can understand under 6’s maybe.
Red funnel been making you get out of cars all way through only 2 one very early and one late sailing was only ones you could stay in car don’t believe the bullshit they use for advertising
Well done Red Funnel… Again not helping tourism on the Island.. People who do not want to gather in big groups (airports, train stations etc) and decide to holiday in England, would possibly have come over to the Island if they were allowed to stay in their cars rather than sitting with everyone else.. It can be done, because red funnel have been doing it for the last 3 months..
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Come on Red Funnel, you have been funded by the government an extortionate amount of money during lock down.. Do something to help the Island that you rely on.. (P.S.. Dear Wightlink, same applies to you aswel)
I won’t be wearing a face muzzle. The stay-in-car policy should be continued for those who want to do so. I suspect most would prefer it. I for one never buy rip-off refreshments on already rip-off ferries, There would be no gain for either company if I were forced into the lounges.
Are they going to clean the toilets every time someone uses them?, are they going to clean all the railings and tables every crossing?, I don’t think so….
Door handles, windows are all potential areas that can be contaminated , it’s a lottery for anyone using the expensive cafe lounge.
Absolutely agree.Such a dangerous, unnecessary and stupid decision. Have they not read about lingering virus in lounges ?? Have they forgotten that just 1 Chinese ignited this pandemic which has now killed over half a million people. It’s a highly highly infectious disease and it’s still here. My family were due to come over to a safe house on the Island next weekend and I’m now very worried and may ask them to cancel the trip. Very damaging for Island tourism too,
Where’s my comment agreeing the dangers mentioned above and seem to have been removed ! This kind of censorship is unacceptable
Could this happen?
I travel on a car ferry, journey time over 20 mins, yes i wore a mask, 3 days later i get symptoms of the virus, i call NHS 111 and go for test which turns out positive.
Contact tracers calls me, asks who i have been in contact with in the past few days.
I answer, about 100+ people on a car ferry at such and such a time on a certain day. Then i went to certain pubs, a restaurant and a packed zoo followed up by a very crowded beach.
How on earth are they going to manage to trace all those people and all the people they have been in contact with.
Yes, the ferry people may have a list of passengers, how correct are they if they accept people turning up at the last minute to catch a ferry and pay by cash.
Or, am i looking on the dark side and it may not happen?
Breaking news; Cafes on board Island ferries not squeezing the last penny out of already hard pressed commuters…. Oh yes, and we know that like The Windmill Theatre, in the war, they never closed down. Shame on them! Pure profiteering in time of crisis. Ought to have been shut down by force with the Royal Navy etc. taking essential goods and workers over the water. Bob Seely feared this might be on the cards when he begged in Parliament for an assurance that his mates’ could all get over to their holiday homes, no matter what the cost.
only booked up on the ferry last week to go to the iow in August on one of the stay in car crossing, looks like ive got to cancel it all now because my wife is vunerable and dont want to mix on a crowded ferry.
Build a bloody bridge
If just one passenger dies as a result of the removal of in car travel Wightlink or Red Funnel could be charged with manslaughter. They need to talk to their lawyers ASAP .://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/homicide-murder-and-manslaughter. Such a stupid, reckless and dangerous idea given what we know about the spread of Covid- 19 in closed spaces.