Latest news with #RenfrewFerry
Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Scottish Sun
‘End of an era' as Scots travel service of 250 years closes immediately after being driven out of business
Gutted passengers rushed online to have their say on the news FERRY WOES 'End of an era' as Scots travel service of 250 years closes immediately after being driven out of business Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE Renfrew Ferry has been forced out of business weeks after the opening of a new bridge. The 250-year-old boat service carried passengers from Renfrew to Yoker on the north side of the River Clyde in Glasgow. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 The Renfrew Ferry has been scrapped weeks after a new bridge opened Credit: The Sun However numbers have plummeted as locals switch to using the new Renfrew Bridge which opened last month. The ferry operator wrote online: "The ferry is closing effective immediately. "Since the bridge opened, the passenger numbers have gone down. "This past week dropped to a level that it is no longer viable to keep running. "We didn't get funding but only passenger fares kept us going. "A huge thank you from us to all of you who used the ferry ,some of you every day. Many became personal friends. "Yes the bridge is a real pain when it's unavailable sometimes for hours. "But that's just swinging bridge life and those of us that live locally will get used to it. "So goodbye from all the Renfrew to Yoker staff, it certainly is the end of an era, we will see you around." Social media users rushed online to have their say on yesterday's news. One wrote: "Well done for keeping it going for so long." Another added: "That's a shame." A third wrote: "Very sorry to hear this! Wishing you all the best." One commented: "Thank you for all your service and hard work even in torrential conditions."
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Last Clyde ferry service closes after new bridge opens
The last regular ferry service across the River Clyde near Glasgow has closed just weeks after the opening of a new road bridge led to a drop in Renfrew Ferry had operated for around 100 years, linking the town to Yoker on the north bank of the river. The boat carried pedestrians and cyclists across the Clyde for a small fare and operated seven days a week without public subsidy. The operators said it was ceasing with immediate effect after a steep fall in passenger numbers meant it was no longer viable. The opening of the new Renfrew Bridge earlier in May had led to speculation about the future of the service, which used a small aluminium boat to carry up to 12 the ferry is closer to Renfrew town centre and the new swing bridge is sometimes closed to allow ships to pass, there were fears that passenger numbers would decrease. In a statement on social media, operators Clydelink said this had proved to be the case, with passenger numbers last week falling to a level that was "no longer viable to keep running". The statement added: "We didn't get funding, but only passenger fares kept us going. A huge thank you from us to all of you who used the ferry. Some of you, every day. "Many became personal friends. Yes, the bridge is a real pain when it's unavailable, sometimes for hours, but that's just swinging bridge life, and those of us who live locally will get used to it."So goodbye from all the Renfrew to Yoker staff. It is certainly the end of an era. We will see you around." Last of the Clyde's urban ferries The Renfrew Ferry was one of numerous ferry services that once operated across the Clyde, including at Finnieston, Govan, Partick, Whiteinch and Erskine. The boom in car use in the 1950s and 1960s saw the introduction of a car ferry at Renfrew which was hauled between the river banks by chains. But the opening of the Clyde Tunnel in 1963 affected usage, and it reverted to a passenger-only service again in 1984. Strathclyde Partnership for Transport continued to provide a subsidised passenger ferry until 2010, when the crossing was taken over by private operator new Renfrew Bridge opened on 9 May, the first new road bridge across the river since the Clyde Arc, nicknamed the "Squinty Bridge," in 2006. Further west, in the wider Firth of Clyde, ferry services continue to operate between Gourock and Dunoon, operated by Western Ferries and CalMac.
