New routes will reduce traffic

THE Port of Boulogne is due to announce plans next week that could reduce the number of lorries passing through Dover.

The Boulogne Chamber of Commerce is holding a press conference on Monday in which it will announce further details of the new Bateau Grande Vitesse (BGV) catamarans that will operate from the port.

They will run on several cross-Channel routes, linking France with Sheerness, as well as Norway and northern Spain, potentially taking traffic away from Dover.

The port is also building a new berth to take the ships.

The BGV craft are described as revolutionary stainless steel trimarans, and can travel at up to 55 knots, more than 10 knots quicker than SpeedFerries’ Speed One. Its design also enables it to be stable in rough seas. Five of the high-speed ships are understood to have been bought by Chikara Shipping, former backers of Navmed, which hoped to run services from Dover’s Western Docks.

John Paul Airs, the entrepreneur behind Navmed and the new fast Chikara venture, declined to comment on the agreement or the new routes.

Full report in next week’s Express.

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