Getting to Europe may soon be easier for Scottish bikers
Officials are hoping to open the first Scotland-to-Europe passenger ferry in 15 years.
There’s good news for Scottish motorcyclists keen to explore the European mainland. Danish ferry service DFDS says it is on the cusp of offering ferry service from Scotland to France.
Specifically, the route will run from Rosyth - just on the other side of the Forth Bridge from Edinburgh - to Dunkirk, in northern France. DFDS says passenger and freight service could begin as early as spring 2026.
The company estimates it will ultimately serve some 79,000 passengers a year and deliver upward of £11 million to the Scottish economy.
Assuming everything pans out, it will be the first time a passenger ferry has operated between Europe and Scotland in more than a decade. The previous service, running from Rosyth to Zeebrugge, Belgium, ceased in 2010.
At present, the closest passenger ferry route for Scottish riders is the Newcastle to Amsterdam service, also run by DFDS. Further south, P&O runs a service from Hull to Rotterdam. Both add a fair bit of garbage time to the itinerary of a Scottish rider eager to get to Europe.
That said, Rosyth to Dunkirk is a relatively long haul. The old Rosyth to Zeebrugge route was a 20-hour crossing; Dunkirk’s a little further south, so you’re looking at spending a lot of time on a boat. But you can eat, drink, and sleep on a ferry, which is arguably a better use of your time than squaring your tyres on the A1. Besides, the ferry from Newcastle to Amsterdam is 17 hours long, so you’re not really saving any time.
DFDS says the route will open as soon as a handful of red tape hurdles are cleared. The port of Rosyth apparently needs a Border Control Post to process agrifoods products. Tediously, the need for such a thing will ultimately disappear under an EU-UK agreement signed earlier this year, but in the interim officials are coming up with a workaround.
“These matters can be complex but we have taken a huge stride towards making this ferry service a reality,” Dunfermline MP Graeme Downie told STV. “Their efforts make it more likely a passenger and freight ferry to Dunkirk could begin as soon as next year.”
The project has the backing of a number of big employers in Scotland, including Amazon.
According to supporters of the service, it could “remove 8.2 million kilometres of freight traffic from UK roads each year,” which seems a little hard to fathom. At any rate, it would definitely take a few lorries off the road - reducing emissions and traffic.
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Chris Cope is a fourth-generation journalist, originally from Texas. He has lived in the UK for roughly two decades and has been writing about motorcycles for most of that time. He has written for dozens of publications and websites in the UK, US, Canada, and Australia.
