Ben Woollacott

Ben Woollacott
Ben Woollacott moored a short distance upstream from the Woolwich Ferry termini in October 2019
History
United Kingdom
NameBen Woollacott
Port of registry London, United Kingdom.
BuilderRemontowa, Gdańsk
Launched2018
Identification
General characteristics
TypePassenger ship/Ro-Ro Cargo[1]
Tonnage1,750 GT[1]
Length60m[1]
Beam19m[1]

Ben Woollacott is a ferry built by Remontowa, Poland that operates the Woolwich Ferry service in London, England.[2] It was named after a teenage deckhand who drowned in an accident while untying mooring ropes of the ferry Ernest Bevin in 2011. Ben came from a family of River Thames watermen that had worked on the river for six generations.[3][4]

It arrived in London on 15 November 2018.[5] It has an automatic docking system to hold the ferry in place during loading.[5] The vessel operates alongside sister ship Dame Vera Lynn. Both suffered from numerous technical issues resulting in closures and service reductions.[6][7]

It was originally operated by Briggs Marine, before London River Services took over operation of the Woolwich Ferry service in December 2020.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "BEN WOOLLACOTT, Passenger/Ro-Ro Cargo - Details and current position - IMO 9822011 MMSI 232017796". VesselFinder. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  2. ^ New ferries for Woolwich Ships Monthly February 2017 page 7
  3. ^ "Ben Woollacott Ferry death report critical of practices". BBC News. 16 August 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Drowned deckhand given ferry name honour". BBC News. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Brand new Woolwich Ferry Ben Woollacott arrives in London for the first time to undertake docking trials at North Woolwich". Newsflare. Newsflare Limited. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  6. ^ "Sadiq Khan apologises after being accused of 'wasting' £20m on new Woolwich ferries". LBC. 7 November 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  7. ^ Chamberlain, Darryl (16 February 2023). "'Shoddy' Woolwich Ferry closed for two weeks for more upgrade works". 853. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  8. ^ Woolwich Ferry Take-Over Ships Monthly July 2020 page 11

Media related to Ben Woollacott (ship, 2018) at Wikimedia Commons