Post-Covid-19: Could some ferry operators ban cyclists?

[SA_SA_SA]

...Resuming operations after a break in service is a logical time to bring in changes that might be met with objections.

There is no harm in being prepared rather than waiting for trouble to surface and then reacting. E.g. those of us who live in places where local authorities own or contribute to funding port facilities might want to remind their councilors about non-motoring passengers before contracts are made, rather than complain when it is too late.

I agree with your 2nd paragraph but previous posts seemed to be getting offended before the event rather than asking how would we stop it: Stena seem happy to have foot and cyclists on the liverpool boats (day foot passengers are only 10-ish pounds presumably because they then spend money on food etc)
I suppose the bicycle trailer costs them a bit but it is towed with the foot passengers luggage (the ferry is too far to walk I think and through motor vehicle waiting/parking ranks etc)

Once covid is gone I don't see taking cyclists onto the ferry is that onerous at which stage they will probably eat etc on the ferry ie are simply extra profit. I thought most ferry routes are mainly funded by freight with ordinary passengers as extra revenue.

'I don't really understand the keenness for unnecessary ferry travel when Covid-19 is active....'... is not the topic - the title reads 'Post-covid'.

But it how many of the posts I was referring to seem to be treating it....

[ChrisF]

Firstly, I agree with those upstream that the most likely cause of a temporary ban on both foot passengers and cyclists is based around the difficulty in maintaining social distancing when boarding and disembarking.
Quite how you do this for vehicle passengers once the vehicles are on board remains to be explained.

One further thing, though, I did read somewhere that ferries would not be opening their lounges to passengers.
This does make me wonder where everyone is going to go during the trip.
I did speculate that everyone would have to have a cabin and that this restricted the numbers they could take so they were cutting out foot and cycle passengers. This doesn't seem particularly logical, though.

If you book a BF trip at the moment, you can't book a 'lounge seat', you have to book a cabin. Even daytime crossings.

As part of our social distancing measures, it is mandatory to book a cabin on all sailings until the end of August

[triker131]

FYI Brittany Ferries already discriminate against recumbent trikes and velomobiles and charge the motorcycle rate. This came up about four years ago (June 2016) and I exchanged emails eventually with Mike Bevens who was the Group Commercial Director at the time.

He confirmed that a velomobile would be charged the same rate as a motorcycle, ie. substantially more than a bicycle based on the larger footprint than a standard bicycle. However, a velomobile (recumbent trike with full body fairing) takes up about the same footprint as a fully loaded tandem with front and rear panniers would.

If I ever make another bike tour to France I'll be riding 50 miles to catch the Newhaven Dieppe ferry rather than the closer 21 miles to BF in Portsmouth out of principle. It's a pity they have a monopoly in the western channel.

[ANTONISH]

Well a tandem carries two - so that's going to generate more revenue than your solo machine, which I would guess is going to take up as much deck space as a motorcycle. You can't fit in to the sort of space that a normal bicycle can.

I suppose the question is - what are you paying for?

[Morzedec]

There is an alternative:

Sadly no cabins available.

[climo]

Surely this is all nonsense.
The ferry companies are starved of cash right now and they'll take anyone that they can. A lot of people won't be going on hols for years as they're got no cash, if they do it'll be a cheap apartment in Spain and a RyanAir flight.
20 bikes take up much less room than 10 cars and probably generate more money, esp as you're stuffed into spaces where they can't put any cars.
Cyclists eat in the restaurant and not all drivers do.

[ChrisF]

Surely this is all nonsense.
The ferry companies are starved of cash right now and they'll take anyone that they can. A lot of people won't be going on hols for years as they're got no cash, if they do it'll be a cheap apartment in Spain and a RyanAir flight.
20 bikes take up much less room than 10 cars and probably generate more money, esp as you're stuffed into spaces where they can't put any cars.
Cyclists eat in the restaurant and not all drivers do.

Latest from Brittany Ferries:

We’ve had to take the tough decision to not accept any further bookings from foot passengers and cyclists too, there are significant operational hurdles involved in transporting them. We can review this as the season unfolds and if it changes, we’ll let you know.

[climo]

Latest from Brittany Ferries:

We’ve had to take the tough decision to not accept any further bookings from foot passengers and cyclists too, there are significant operational hurdles involved in transporting them. We can review this as the season unfolds and if it changes, we’ll let you know.

Wow! They're idiots!
I guess that applies to coaches as their passengers walk aboard I think.

[robing]

There's always Eurotunnel - just £21 one way for cross channel.

I hope bicycle travel on Cal Mac ferries will return to normal once this is over.

[1982john]

looks like Irish Ferries are applying the same demented logic

Stena line is currently taking bookings by bike.

[jacobean]

looks like Irish Ferries are applying the same demented logic

Do you have a source?

[Thehairs1970]

FYI Brittany Ferries already discriminate against recumbent trikes and velomobiles and charge the motorcycle rate. This came up about four years ago (June 2016) and I exchanged emails eventually with Mike Bevens who was the Group Commercial Director at the time.

He confirmed that a velomobile would be charged the same rate as a motorcycle, ie. substantially more than a bicycle based on the larger footprint than a standard bicycle. However, a velomobile (recumbent trike with full body fairing) takes up about the same footprint as a fully loaded tandem with front and rear panniers would.

If I ever make another bike tour to France I'll be riding 50 miles to catch the Newhaven Dieppe ferry rather than the closer 21 miles to BF in Portsmouth out of principle. It's a pity they have a monopoly in the western channel.

While I sympathise with those who end up paying more, you have to apply borders somehow. Vans and motorhomes get charged differently, I believe. What does annoy is that, apparently, if the number of cabins is getting low, at least one company reserves them for drivers not cyclists.

Let's face it. None of us know what is going to happen in the coming weeks. If you have the freedom to travel whenever, I'd just wait and see. If you don't, start to make alternative plans. We've been forced to do that and as planning is half the fun...

[1982john]

looks like Irish Ferries are applying the same demented logic

Do you have a source?

If you try to book using a bicycle on this site they don't come up as an option whereas they do as a car

https://book.ferrysavers.co.uk/action/s ... 1849407699

Stena line is available though.

[triker131]

DFDS are taking bicycle booking for their Newhaven Dieppe route, £40 return for a 1 to 5 day return in early September.

With a freestanding recumbent trike/velomobile you just park up and put the brakes on, no need to tie in to a wall like regular cycles. On both my Portsmouth/Caen crossings in 2015 with BF I was parked in free space in the middle of the bike alcove which is at the side of the main car deck. I was using space that otherwise would have been left empty as the bikes were all tied in about three deep to the railing around the alcove, still bags of space in the centre of the alcove.

[JakobW]

How much hand luggage are you allowed as a foot passenger? Anyone tried taking a rinko-style broken-down-and-bagged bicycle on board?