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Just Occurred To Me.
Do hovercrafts still run across the Channel from England to France? Only used one once, 30-odd years ago, and never again.
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Of more general interest:
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The only year-round passenger service operated by hovercaft, anywhere in the world, is the one to and from the Isle of Wight:
https:/
https:/
The only year-round passenger service operated by hovercaft, anywhere in the world, is the one to and from the Isle of Wight:
https:/
There was a cross-channel hovercraft service which operated from Ramsgate to Calais until 1982. The hoverport at Ramsgate (which was actually on Pegwell Bay, which stretches from Ramsgate to nearby Sandwich) was the bees’ knees in its day.
Hovercraft were thirsty animals and the 1970s oil crisis made them increasingly uneconomical to run. In an effort to cut costs Hoverlloyd (who operated the services from Pegwell Bay) merged with its rival Seaspeed (who operated services from Dover). The Ramsgate passenger services were discontinued in 1982 and the site was retained as a maintenance site until final abandonment in 1987.
I pass the site from time to time (although not so much traffic does so now due to major road improvements in the area). The site is now inaccessible by car, though can still be reached on foot. It derelict and overgrown with no real signs that it was once such an important transport hub:
http://
As an aside the cooling towers visible in some of the photographs no longer exist. They were part of Richborough Power Station which ceased generation in 1996 and the towers were demolished in 2012. The connectivity to the National Grid was retained and is now used to convey electricity from the Thanet offshore wind farm
Apart from the prohibitive operating costs the principle problem with large hovercraft is one of noise. Pegwell Bay residents suffered particularly from the service with the nearest houses being very close to the terminal. Following the cessation of the hovercraft services a Seacat service ran from Ramsgate to Dunkirk for a few years in the 1990s. I used it once or twice and I am surprised it survived as long as it did. There are now no regular ferry services from Ramsgate. The last freight service operated by DFDS ceased in 2013. There is talk of the resurrection of a Seacat service to Calais but the days of hovercraft operations across the channel are long gone and will almost certainly never be seen again.
Hovercraft were thirsty animals and the 1970s oil crisis made them increasingly uneconomical to run. In an effort to cut costs Hoverlloyd (who operated the services from Pegwell Bay) merged with its rival Seaspeed (who operated services from Dover). The Ramsgate passenger services were discontinued in 1982 and the site was retained as a maintenance site until final abandonment in 1987.
I pass the site from time to time (although not so much traffic does so now due to major road improvements in the area). The site is now inaccessible by car, though can still be reached on foot. It derelict and overgrown with no real signs that it was once such an important transport hub:
http://
As an aside the cooling towers visible in some of the photographs no longer exist. They were part of Richborough Power Station which ceased generation in 1996 and the towers were demolished in 2012. The connectivity to the National Grid was retained and is now used to convey electricity from the Thanet offshore wind farm
Apart from the prohibitive operating costs the principle problem with large hovercraft is one of noise. Pegwell Bay residents suffered particularly from the service with the nearest houses being very close to the terminal. Following the cessation of the hovercraft services a Seacat service ran from Ramsgate to Dunkirk for a few years in the 1990s. I used it once or twice and I am surprised it survived as long as it did. There are now no regular ferry services from Ramsgate. The last freight service operated by DFDS ceased in 2013. There is talk of the resurrection of a Seacat service to Calais but the days of hovercraft operations across the channel are long gone and will almost certainly never be seen again.
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