Solent ferry operator to order three new vessels

The 30-year-old Red Falcon vehicle ferry, seen here on the right, is nearing the end of its design life

A ferry operator has confirmed it plans to order three new vehicle ferries to replace its ageing fleet.

But it will be several years before the new vessels will enter service with Solent ferry operator Red Funnel.

Its Scottish-built vehicles ferries, Red Falcon and Red Osprey, are 30 years old and nearing the end of their design life.

The investment, likely to be about £100m, comes as the company has faced criticism over its service so far this year.

"We are raising investment for three new ferries," said Fran Collins, chief executive of Red Funnel.

"The ships will be smaller and more agile than the two car ferries we use now, but between them they will have similar capacity."

The tender for shipyards to build the new ferries will be issued later this year.

Ms Collins said it was possible they could be built in the UK.

Fran Collins said it was possible the ships could be built in the UK

But they will not be delivered until 2028 or 2029.

They will have diesel engines, even though battery-electric power is proven technology on ships, and electric ferries of similar size are in use in Scandinavia.

Ms Collins said the company would "very much like the ships to be powered by electricity", but said there was an "insufficient" power supply on the south coast.

Red Funnel senior chief engineer Lewis Gray said the new ships will be designed with the potential for the engines to be replaced at a later date if electric or hydrogen power become viable.

"We are looking at new technologies. We are in the early stages, we have a plan for what we want and what the island needs, which will give us a faster crossing time," he said.

"But because the power supply simply isn't there in Southampton the ferries will have to be hybrid propulsion, to start with."

Lewis Gray is senior chief engineer at Red Funnel

Rival operator Wightlink has also said it would like to use battery power for future ferries from Portsmouth to Fishbourne and Ryde, but it faces the same problem of insufficient power availability from the National Grid.

Red Funnel has been criticised on the island for poor service in the first part of 2024.

It has been affected by a succession of technical failures on both its vehicle and high-speed passenger sailings, as well as cancelling some services due to a lack of crew availability.

Red Funnel said the breakdowns coincided with planned maintenance of other ships, a period of bad weather and staff sickness.

Nick Davis has travelled with Red Funnel 100 times so far this year

It said reliability has improved from a low point of 78% in early 2024 to 94% in May. Its target is 98%.

Nick Davis, from Cowes, has travelled with Red Funnel 100 times so far this year.

"You need a sense of humour," he said.

"There are breakdowns and sometimes both the Red Jet and the car ferry have been out of action at the same time. We have to take it on the chin. It has been very frustrating."