Feature: Full steam ahead for iconic ferries across the Mersey

For more than 800 years ferries have carried people across Britain's River Mersey, making it one of the world's oldest ferry services.

The chances of the iconic Mersey ferries happily sailing towards their millennium were given a boost Wednesday when transport bosses in Liverpool unveiled a long term visionary survival plan.

The ferries have starred in a full length film, 'Ferry Cross the Mersey', two of the boats were rewarded by the King for a key role they played during World War I, and they have hosted concerts by famous groups such as the Beatles.

But with competition from cross-river trains, buses and two road tunnels, the use of the ferries has been on a long-term decline,costing millions of dollars in public subsidies.

This year around 600,000 will have made that ferry journey across the Mersey, but in 1950 almost 30 million passengers travelled on the fleet of ferries when it was still a major commuter journey for thousands of people living either side of the Mersey.

The ferries have faced total closure in the past, saved only from the breaker's yard by nostalgia and the love of the ferries by people in the Liverpool area.

Now, what has been a lifeline for the ferry service, leisure cruises, is to be expanded. For tourists from around the world, that ferry across the Mersey is high on the 'to do' list.

Two new ferry boats are to be built, each costing up to 15 million U.S.dollars to replace the existing fleet of three, each of them approaching 60 years of age.

The two new ferries will take on the names of the famous Royal Iris and Royal Daffodil, keeping alive the memories of their namesakes. It was during WWI the Daffodil and Iris took part in a naval raid on Zeebrugge in Belgium, chosen for active service because their shallow drafts allowed them to dodge explosive mines.

Both ferries were damaged by enemy action, but returned to Liverpool to be given a hero's welcome. They were mentioned in dispatches for their valiant contribution and King George V granted them the right to use the regal prefix, becoming Royal Iris of the Mersey and Royal Daffodil.

Mersey Ferries spokesman Gary Evans: "Use of the ferries has been steadily declining since their heyday because of other methods of crossing the river. Even so the ferry service remains the most popular paid for attraction in the Liverpool area.

"We have devised a 20-year vision which is aimed at securing the long term future of the ferries for generations to come. What we have proposed will be introduced gradually so there will be no sudden changes. It is clear there is a growing demand from the leisure sector for ferry cruises, and we want to build on that."

This year the Mersey Ferries won the prestigious Operator of the Year award at the National Transport Awards, recognising the value of the famous ferries to the economy.

It was in 1150 when monks from a priory on the river bank opposite Liverpool started a ferry service, charging a small fare to row passengers across the Mersey. Eight centuries later the service they started survives and now looks set for a bright future. Endit