Visit to the Port of Dover

Rotary Club of South Foreland: Visit to the Port of Dover

We met at Terminal 1 on Wednesday 28^th February and were looked after by Emma Ward, Chief Operations Officer, and her staff.  We thank them for giving up their time on a day which had been a difficult one.  We were first given a run-down of what happens at Terminal 1 and then were shown around what was the historic Marime Railway Station which was built between 1910 and 1915. Wounded soldiers from France arrived here and there is a memorial to the Unknown Warrior who passed through this station on the way to Westminster Abbey.

The cruise season begins in April and lasts until the end of October.  At this busy time staff from the cargo operation and RORO ferries may work here as their skills are transferrable.   Only the smaller cruise liners use Terminal 1; larger ones use terminal 3.

We boarded a mini bus, left Terminal one and were driven to the Eastern Docks where we were given priority over all the queueing traffic and reached the land side Terminal Control Building.  In the wet and dark it was difficult to work out exactly where we were in the port.

Half of the group stayed at this building while the other half continued to the Marine Port Control Building overlooking the eastern entrance to the harbour. Reaching this area meant driving along the eastern arm of the harbour very close to the water, a rather forbidding sight on a dark, wet and windy evening.  Then there were three steep flights of steps to climb up to the main control room. This is where the traffic movement in and out of the harbour and in the English Channel can be followed on the radar, with two members of staff in communication with, and able to give directions to shipping, where necessary.

We learnt that there had been an emergency in the Channel nearer the French coast earlier in the day when three people were tragically lost overboard from a small boat carrying migrants.  The Dover and Ramsgate lifeboats could still be located on the radar and the Dungeness lifeboat had also been involved.

This building is where decisions about using tugs to help ships dock are made when the sea is rough, but it is not often that the Port is fully closed.

Back at the land sideTerminal Control Building we learnt about the management of the ferries, cargo and freight operations.   The Port is a forty acre site and there has been continued development to increase efficiency, to keep traffic flowing and provide parking space.

Planning is key to the smooth operation of the Port.  Planning for the Easter rush and the additional biometric checks in October is well under way.  Contrary to press reports, the Port works closely with the French and information is shared.  The border is going to relocated to a more logical area with eighteen instead of twelve booths.  In fact, the development plan for the Port extends until 2050.

Some ferries are already hybrid, being fuelled by electricity as well as oil.  The plan is that all ships will eventually be powered by electricity.  The problem at Dover is the supply of electricity.  At Calais there are nearby power stations, but this is not the case in Dover.  This is a problem that will be overcome in time.  There are new ferries where traffic drives in one end and then unloads from the other end, which speeds up the turnaround time.  There will be more of these ferries in time.

We thank Emma and all the staff we met for their friendliness, and openness about their jobs and the management of the Port.  They were committed to their work, had pride in the Port of Dover, and a positive attitude to confronting and overcoming challenges.