Major disruptions have hit the Portsmouth to Fishbourne ferry service today, it’s due to a mechanical issue on board the St Clare, affecting two of its engines.
Good news for ferry passengers stuck at Portsmouth and Fishbourne ports today.
Wightlink have announced in the last hour, the St Clare which was suffering mechanical issues with its two engines is now back in service.
Sea operations began again at 5pm, Wightlink say that they apologies for the disruption the recent cancellations have caused to customers travel plans.
Earlier today the following announcement was made on the Wightlink WhatsApp service: "Wightlink's St Clare ferry remains out of service on the Portsmouth-Fishbourne route today because of a technical problem involving two of its engines. Both engines have developed faults, which we believe are linked.
Unfortunately, we have had to cancel all of St Clare’s scheduled sailings today and are in the process of informing customers. St Faith is operating a shuttle service and is fully booked.
We sincerely apologise for disrupting travel plans for our customers. If your sailing has been cancelled, please do not drive to our ports, which will be very busy. We would advise customers to cancel or amend your booking online, full refunds will be given free-of-charge.
Engineers are working to fix the problem, and we hope to bring St Clare back as soon as we can. There will be extra sailings between Lymington and Yarmouth overnight.
We will give a further update this afternoon. Our third boat on the route, Victoria of Wight, is undergoing annual maintenance and cannot return to service.
Customers who need to travel to the Isle of Wight today can use Wightlink's FastCat foot passenger service free of charge and leave their vehicles in Wightlink's Gunwharf Road car park."
With schools on half-term and the Isle of Wight a popular getaway for many in the South, the disruption is forcing people to rethink their travel plans.
For the latest Wightlink live service status click this link: Wightlink live ferry service status - Wightlink Ferries
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