Port of Liverpool
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The Port of Liverpool is the name for the enclosed 7.5 mile dock system that runs from Herculaneum Dock to Seaforth Dock, in the city of Liverpool, England, on the east side of the River Mersey. It is combined with the dock facilities built around the Great Float of the Wirral Peninsula, located on the west side of the river.
The working docks are operated by Mersey Docks and Harbour Company, the docks to the south of the Pier Head are operated by British Waterways.
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[edit] Connections
At one point the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company railway totalled 104 miles (166km) of line, with connections to many other railways. A section of the line ran, unsegregated from other road traffic, along the dock road. Today only the Canada Dock Branch is used.
For passengers disembarking from the new cruise liner terminal, city centre circular buses call at the terminal directly, while Moorfields is the nearest Merseyrail station.
[edit] History
The interconnected dock system, entailing ship movements within the dock system 24 hours a day, isolated from the high River Mersey tides, were the most advanced port system in the world. Parts of the system are now a World Heritage Site.[1]
Both White Star Line and Cunard Line were based at the port. It was also the home port of many great ships, including RMS Baltic and the ill starred Tayleur, MV Derbyshire, HMHS Britannic, RMS Lusitania and the RMS Titanic.
In 1971 what would be the last transatlantic liner for over 30 years sailed from Liverpool. Cruise liners returned to Liverpool in 2008, where they dock at the new cruise liner terminal. Ships to have called at Liverpool include RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) and the Grand Princess from Bermuda, along with a number of large Royal Navy ships. As well as being a calling point, cruises also set out from Liverpool. Liverpool is one of the few cities in the world where ocean going liners can berth in the city centre, providing a spectacular addition to the waterfront skyline.
The Liverpool Dockers' Strike in 1995 was a pivotal point for the Port of Liverpool. The dispute ended in 1998.
[edit] Recent activity
In 2007 Liverpool was the United Kingdom's seventh largest port by tonnage handled.[2]
| Product | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grain | 2,289,000 tonnes | 2,377,000 tonnes | 2,360,000 tonnes | 2,455,000 tonnes |
| Timber | 295,000 tonnes | 391,000 tonnes | 406,000 tonnes | 452,000 tonnes |
| Bulk Liquids | 774,000 tonnes | 727,000 tonnes | 788,000 tonnes | 707,000 tonnes |
| Bulk Cargo | 6,051,000 tonnes | 6,296,000 tonnes | 5,572,000 tonnes | 5,026,000 tonnes |
| Oil Terminal | 11,406,000 tonnes | 11,406,000 tonnes | 11,604,000 tonnes | 11,236,000 tonnes |
| General Cargo | 374,000 tonnes | 556,000 tonnes | 468,000 tonnes | 514,000 tonnes |
| Total | 32,171,000 tonnes | 31,753,000 tonnes | 30,564,000 tonnes | 30,501,000 tonnes |
| Passengers | 720,000 | 734,000 | 716,000 | 654,000 |
| Containers | 616,000 | 578,000 | 535,000 | 524,000 |
| RoRo | 513,000 | 476,000 | 502,000 | 533,000 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City". UNESCO. http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=1150. Retrieved on 12 June 2008.
- ^ (DFT) Provisional Port Statistics 2007
[edit] External links
- Port of Liverpool
- The Port of Liverpool In Camera
- Historic map of railways in Liverpool
- Select Committee on Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs: Memorandum by Merseytravel
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