Brittany Ferries has confirmed it will add a third weekly return-sailing, connecting Rosslare with Cherbourg.
The extended service begins next Monday (April 29) and the ferry company said the move will boost connectivity ahead of the arrival of its rail-ferry service in 2025.
Ferroutage will link Bayonne with Cherbourg by rail, carrying trailers for onward transport by ferry.
“The addition of a third weekly rotation from Cherbourg is great news for hauliers and logistics companies,” said Christophe Mathieu CEO Brittany Ferries. “It means even more opportunity for freight operators to by-pass the UK entirely, cutting down on bureaucracy and delays that can occur the UK border.”
The company has massively grown the direct Ireland-France market since 2021 and has reaffirmed its freight and passenger traffic commitment. In two years, freight volumes on France to Ireland routes has grown by 96% from 3,808 in 2021 to 7,734 units last year. Passenger traffic has also been boosted by 412% (a fourfold increase) from 28,584 in 2021 to 146,351 last year.
Glenn Carr, Director of Commercial Business Units Iarnród Éireann/ Irish Rail & Port Authority Rosslare Europort added: “We are delighted to see our shipping partner Brittany Ferries further increase services at Rosslare Europort. As we continue to significantly invest in facilities and infrastructure at the port it is great to see additional new services introduced that further strengthen our links and connectivity between Ireland and France.”
The service will leave Cherbourg at 18:20 local time on Monday, arriving at Rosslare at 14:00 on Tuesday. It will then depart Rosslare at 18:00 destined for arrival in Cherbourg on Wednesday at 17:00.
Brittany Ferries has chartered Condor’s ferry the Commodore Clipper for the service, which will also include additional sailings to and from Portsmouth. The Clipper will be chartered to the company for around half the week: the other half it will continue to be used by Condor to serve the Channel Islands.
In addition to three weekly rotations linking Rosslare with Cherbourg, Brittany Ferries operates two weekly Cork-Roscoff round trips and a bi-weekly service from Rosslare to Bilbao.
