Ferry "chaos" as Portsmouth Wightlink passengers wait hours for ferries to Isle of Wight due to technical issue on St Clare
A technical issue on one of Wightlink’s ferries has resulted in long delays for passengers, some of whom have been waiting over five hours to get across to the Isle of Wight.
Wightlink Ferries reported an issue with its St Clare ferry on social media just after 12.30pm on Thursday, February 20. Delays were announced of two hours from the Portsmouth terminal on Gunwharf Road for its services to Fishbourne, but some customers have already been waiting over five hours to board a ferry.
Amy Hall travelled to the port from London with her two children, arriving at around 1pm for the 2pm crossing. However, after a 45 minute queue to get into the terminal, she was informed of the two hour delay. At the time of writing Amy is still waiting to get on a ferry after being told to expect to be on the 4pm and then 7pm crossing.
She said: “It has been chaos. There are a lot of very angry people at the terminal. There’s no food in the fridge in the café and the staff are all fed up. It’s also worth mentioning that no attempt has been made to apologise, or to offer any kind of compensation apart from a voucher for a hot drink. Today has been shocking.”
Having initially advised a two hour delay on social media, it was later extended. A post on X at 3pm stated: “Sorry, due to a mechanical issue on board St Clare on our Portsmouth – Fishbourne some customers may experience delays of up to 180 minutes today Thursday, February 20.”
A Wightlink spokesperson has confirmed that the issue means some crossings will be cancelled tonight and tomorrow morning. They said: “Wightlink's St Clare ferry has been withdrawn from service on the Portsmouth-Fishbourne route because of a technical problem involving two engines.
“The 8pm sailing from Portsmouth and 9pm from Fishbourne have been cancelled. Tomorrow morning, the 6am and 8am sailings from Portsmouth and 7am and 9am from Fishbourne will also be cancelled; customers have been informed. St Faith is operating a shuttle service overnight.
“We apologise for disrupting travel plans for our customers. Engineers are working to fix the problem, and we hope to bring St Clare back as soon as we can. The third ferry on the route, Victoria of Wight, is undergoing annual maintenance and cannot return to service.
“As Wightlink's Portsmouth and Fishbourne ports are very busy, we advise customers to cancel or amend their bookings online, full refunds will be given free-of-charge.”