Trainbike46
Established Member
Many of the coach passenger on the Belfast-cairnryan ferry board as foot passengers, over the summer there were 4 coach/rail services:I don’t know if there’s any requirement to convey foot passengers but numbers are in decline and they’re never going to get back to anything near where they once were. The fact that foot passengers are no longer carried on some services speaks volumes.
I can see an argument for through coach services eg Glasgow to Belfast where the passengers can board the ferry on the coach and technically aren’t food passengers.
Nolan Coaches (3x per day), board ferry on the coach
Scottish Citylink / Ulsterbus (3x per day), board ferry as a foot passenger via gangway
Stena glasgow daytrip (1x per day summer only), board ferry as a foot passenger via gangway (presumably this was set up this summer in response to overcrowding on the other coach services)
SailRail (2x per day summer, 1x per day year round), board ferry as a foot passenger via gangway
And then there is various foot passengers who don't book it as part of a coach/train journey, overall the numbers of foot passengers appear healthy. I think SailRail in particular suffers from being very unknown, based on the amount of surprised people in Belfast when I mention its existence. On top of that, for many Scottish destinations, at least in the central belt, the coaches are currently a better offering (fewer changes, more times available so more likely to suit travel plans)
Some ferry services have recently started carrying foot passengers, so it is not just a story of reducing availability for foot passengers
For example, Brittany Ferries Rosslare-Bilbao has started taking foot passengers relatively recently
Last edited: