BLUEBRIDGE FERRY CANCELLATIONS - 20 SEP
Bluebridge have advised that Connemara 8:30pm freight sailing from Wellington to Picton lost power in Cook Strait on Thursday night. As a result, the following sailings on Friday 20 September are cancelled:
Picton to Wellington: 2:30 am
Wellington to Picton: 8:15 am
Picton to Wellington: 2:00 pm
Please note that these ferry cancellations will impact our network, so please expect delays with freight movement. We anticipate that disruptions may continue into next week, and we will keep you updated on any further cancellations.
We will update our website as we hear more.
Updated 20 September (04:53pm)
Further to our network update posted this morning, we have received further notification from Bluebridge as follows:
Friday 20 September
Picton to Wellington: 2:30 am
Wellington to Picton: 8:15 am
Picton to Wellington: 2:00 pm
Wellington to Picton: 8:30pmSaturday 21 September
Picton to Wellington: 2:30am
Updated 23 September (11:55am)
The following notice was posted on the Bluebridge website (last updated Sunday 22 September 12:30pm):
“The Connemara has returned to the Bluebridge berth in Wellington and an inspection of the ship by Maritime New Zealand is continuing today.
Safety is our highest priority, and we are working through the required process to ensure the problem experienced by Connemara is rectified and the ship can return to service when ready. However, we still don't have a confirmed timeframe for when this may be and further changes to the schedule are required over the coming days.
As a result, the following sailings are cancelled:
Sunday 22 September:
Wellington to Picton 1:30 pm
Picton to Wellington 7:15 pm
Monday 23 September:
Wellington to Picton 2:00 am, 1:30 pm
Picton to Wellington 7:45 am, 7:15 pm
Tuesday 24 September
Wellington to Picton 2:00 am, 1:30 pm
Picton to Wellington 7:45 am, 7:15 pm
Wednesday 25 September
Wellington to Picton 2:00 am, 1:30 pm
Picton to Wellington 7:45 am, 7:15 pm
Any further cancellations will be advised.”
Please note that these additional ferry cancellations will further impact our network, so please expect delays with freight movement.
Updated 24 September (4pm)
The following communication was received from Bluebridge:
“Maritime New Zealand is continuing to investigate last week’s incident with the Connemara. The ship will remain out of service in the short term.
As a result, the following sailings have been cancelled:
Thursday 26 September
Wellington to Picton 2:00 am, 1:30 pm
Picton to Wellington 7:45 am, 7:15 pm
Strait Feronia will continue to operate on Connemara’s schedule.”
Please note that these additional ferry cancellations will further impact our network, so please expect delays with freight movement.
Updated 27 September (12:30pm)
The following communication was received from Bluebridge:
“Maritime NZ has concluded their port state inspection of Connemara, and she can now return to service this evening for her 8:30pm sailing.
We will operate additional sailings tomorrow, Saturday to help clear any backlog of freight from this week’s disruption.
Sailing schedule through to Saturday:
Friday 27 September
Wellington to Picton 8:15am, 8:30pm (Connemara)
Picton to Wellington 2:30am, 2:00pm
Saturday 28 September (Extra sailings in bold)
Wellington to Picton 2:00am, 8:15am, 1:30pm, 8:30pm
Picton to Wellington 2:30am, 7:45am, 2:00pm, 7:15pm
Sunday 29 September
Normal schedule resumes”