UK car ferries are now among the safest in Europe, with dramatic improvements in standards over the last four years, according to a report published by The AA Motoring Trust and other European motoring organisations. But while ferry safety has been boosted on UK and other Continental routes, passenger safety on some vessels in Europe is still below standard according to the study, which examined 34 ferries, including 8 sailing to and from UK ports. Some ships operating in the eastern Mediterranean notably around Greece, home of the 2004 Olympics are among the worst in Europe.
All the UK ferries tested have above-average safety, with the top rating of "very good" awarded to three: the Pride of Cherbourg, operated by P&O, sailing from Portsmouth to Cherbourg; the European Highlander, (P&O Irish Sea Ferries, from Larne to Cairnryan); and the Dublin Swift (Irish Ferries, Holyhead to Dublin).
Five other UK ships assessed are rated "good". These are the Stena Hollandica, operated by Stena Line, travelling from Harwich to the Hook of Holland; the Pride of Dover (P&O, from Dover to Calais); the SeaFrance Cezanne (Sea France, Dover to Calais); the Lagan Viking (NorsMerchant Ferries, Belfast to Liverpool); and the Pride of York (P&O North Sea Ferries, Hull to Zeebrugge).
The top graded ferry of all of those tested is the Excelsior, run by Italian operator Grandi Vavi Veloci. By contrast, Europes worst ferries, rated "poor", are the Flaminia, operated in Italy by tirrenia, and the Rodanthi, run in Greece by GA Ferries. Two other Greek ships are only "acceptable", although three are "good" and one is "very good".
Each ferry was judged by highly experienced marine surveyors on a wide variety of criteria, including safety information, emergency drills, cargo handling, fire equipment, lifejackets and lifeboats, bow door condition, construction and navigation systems. Inspectors carried out the tests in March this year and went on board as fare-paying passengers.
The survey found that the most common safety problems on the worst-performing ferries are: poor safety information for passengers, such as no loudspeaker announcements or announcements in just one language; no black boxes; and difficulty in accessing fire-fighting equipment and lifebelts. The inspectors also found that emergency drills on some ships leave a lot to be desired: crews performed badly on 3 of the 11 ships on which the inspectors were able to witness fire drills.
Bert Morris, deputy director of The AA Motoring Trust, says: The 16 million people travelling on ferries sailing to and from UK ports each year are now in safer hands than they were when this study was carried out in 2000. Back then, several UK ferries were among Europes worst for safety, but now they set the standards to which other vessels on the continent must aspire.
But there is a long way to go before sea travellers throughout Europe can be assured of optimum security. Of particular concern are ships on routes in the eastern Mediterranean, where serious safety issues continue to be raised."
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