Public Funds Unavailable for Ferry Service Reinstatement

A council has been informed that government transport funds are unavailable for assisting in the re-establishment of a ferry service operating across the Thames Estuary. The foot ferry, which connected Tilbury in Essex and Gravesend in Kent, ceased operations in March after Kent County Council withdrew its financial support and the service operator departed. Annually, the ferry transported 10,000 passengers and offered an alternative to the congested road network, as reported by the Local Democracy Reporting Service. Paul Crick, who serves as the interim director for Thurrock Council, stated: “We’ve always been clear there’s no public funding towards it – it needs to run on a commercial basis.””I’ve made clear our desire for the ferry to come back on a commercial basis. “I’ve explored with the Department of Transport whether we could use any of our grant funding we’ve received for public transport provision towards the ferry and they’ve told us we can’t. “It’s very much with the consultants now to see how a ferry could operate.” Mr. Crick additionally informed the place overview and scrutiny committee that the Thames Estuary Growth Board—a collaborative entity comprising Thurrock Council, Kent County Council, and other partners—had explored methods to reinstate the ferry service, citing “a lot of public demand.” He communicated to councillors of the Labour-controlled council that a study initiated in September was examining feasible alternatives and is now expected to deliver its findings in January, rather than the previous month. Previously this year, Roy Jones, an Independent councillor representing Stanford East and Corringham Town, proposed a motion advocating for the council to exert maximum effort in facilitating the ferry’s restoration.