A new ferry link between Rosyth and Dunkirk is expected to return by the end of 2026, reconnecting Scotland with mainland Europe.
This connection is one of many funded by the port of Dunkirk’s £35bn regeneration project, aiming to reindustrialise and return the port city to its former World War Two glory.
This proposal comes eight years after freight services between Rosyth — a town 10 miles northwest of the Scottish capital — and Zeebrugge in Belgium were cancelled because of a fire onboard, and 16 years since the passenger element of this journey was scrapped.
This new connection is set to be operated by the Danish company DFDS, and the estimated 20-hour journey will run three times a week.
While a DFDS spokesman was unable to provide clear dates, he declared that “progress is being made, and we remain optimistic about the potential of this new route.”
However, financial viability and government support could still stand in the way of this relaunch.
Furthermore, tighter post-Brexit regulations will require biosecurity checks of all food and agricultural products at a Border Control Post (BCP) before passing through the UK.
No such BCP exists at Rosyth, however, so changes must be made to allow goods to be checked off-site, with Grangemouth 20 miles away being proposed as the solution.
Despite these barriers, Scots have expressed their support for the new connection.
Douglas Chapman, the former SNP MP for Dunfermline and West Fife praised the services’ “transformative opportunity” for Scotland’s relationship with Europe, and its potential to increase “trade and tourism in the wake of Brexit’s disruptions” and “benefit Scottish exporters by providing a direct, cost-effective pathway to EU markets.”
Dunkirk port remains optimistic about the reopening of a ferry link between Scotland and France ahead of the return of the Six Nations in early 2027.
“Firth of Forth, Rosyth Docks – geograph.org.uk – 5423990” by David Dixon is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.