DFDS Launches New Unaccompanied Freight Service From Sheerness To Calais

Award-winning ferry operator, DFDS, is to launch a new freight-only service between Sheerness and Calais.

The service will start on 1 June and will offer one daily sailing in each direction between the two ports. It will be operated by the Gothia, which can carry up to 165 unaccompanied freight units.

The port of Sheerness, part of Peel Ports’ London Medway cluster, is located in northern Kent and operates 24 hours a day and is fully open/accessible seven days a week. This flexibility offers customers congestion free access to drop and collect trailers, with no standage charges applied for the first 48 hours.

The port benefits from close proximity to the M25 orbital ring (approximately 40km closer to the M25 than Dover), which is ideal for goods heading to the London area and the Midlands.

The new route expands DFDS’ existing network of services between the UK and Europe and comes in response to growing demand for unaccompanied freight services. The company operates a pan-European network of 27 ferry routes, providing excellent connectivity to mainland Europe.

It is the latest in a series of investments that the company is making to improve its services. A brand-new freight and passenger ship, the Cote d’Opale will join its Dover to Calais route in July this year, increasing capacity on the route and enhancing the passenger experience onboard its fleet.

Wayne Bullen, Freight Sales Director at DFDS, said: “We’re really pleased to be adding a new unaccompanied freight service to the extensive route network that DFDS already offers. Sheerness benefits from excellent road links and is closer to the M25 than other routes, making it ideal for goods heading to the London area and the Midlands.

“Sheerness promises to be a superb ‘partner port’, with an ambitious plan to grow its services over the next decade. We also continue to cement our partnership with the port of Calais and are excited to be expanding our services to the port as it marks the fulfilment of its multi-million-pound expansion project.”