Anyone know if the friends of the ferries is still going, I can't find anything apart from historic news articles on the internet.

The website that I presume used to belong to them just has a load of angling information and not a ferry in sight.

Haven't checked facebook/twitter etc as you can never tell which ones are "official" and which aren't on them.

I don't know how official they are but there are campaign groups on Facebook re. saving Woodside and Seacombe Ferries (if that is your reason for looking).

There was a meeting today but as usual have not came to any answers what will happen.
Was listening to it on that Bay tv channel earlier on xx

I think there's some sort of protest at 11 o clock on Saturday morning at Woodside

Dont think they will close one or the other down in the near future Star.
Be sad if this did happen.History once again wiped out.

Here DD. Try Gordon Ditchfield. Even if it was 3 yrs ago, I'm sure he would be able to update you.

https://www.wikiwirral.co.uk/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/777656/Friends_of_the_Ferries_-_Dock_.html

Cheers granny, I'm trying to think where my newsletters are.

Gordon is still active in the "Wirral transport Users Association" and is still listed as the Friends of the Ferries rep there so is probably a good person to contact.

There is also a protest- at some time- about Seacombe Ferry closing.

Sad, sad situation for all of us.

In my Opinion- Seacombe has the free carpark for ferry users. Probably used by business people, working in Liverpool. On the Leisure front, there is 2+ miles of waterfront to enjoy- especially for foreign visitors who do truly buzz off taking selfies of themselves with the Liverpool skyline in the background.

Other than that, there is nothing else in Seacombe to see.

The advantages of the Woodside terminal is Hamilton Square Train Station. I would think that those of you from South/ West Wirral who wish to travel to Liverpool on our Ferry could do so much easier by travelling to Hamilton Square first?
However, what and where in Woodside is there to go to ?(tourist point of view)??

Maybe..just maybe, they have crucified themselves with the prices !

plus car parking charges at Woodside.

Yes - but who crucified OUR ferries - they belong to US, not THEM.

Many years ago I went to Hong Kong and went on their ferries which are very similar to ours. Star Ferries they are called ...they were heaving with people all going over to Kowloon (I think it was) anyway as I say absolutley full up and one after the other. The fare was something like 30pence in our money and apparently had stayed that way for years. Still don't think it's too much now. I said then ours should be like this cheap as chips and full all the time sure it would generate more money in long rum. Don't think this thing of putting fares up when losing money makes sense, the trains and buses should be so cheap people want to use them...

Not a great deal now. From a post I made in November:

I'm afraid these discussions concerning the ability of Birkenhead to attract people, be they tourists, shoppers or businesses are all avoiding talking about the elephant in the room, which is that due to lack of investment by local and central government, and the conduct of many of the inhabitants, which you could argue has been formed by social and economic deprivation, Birkenhead ( to quote my late lamented Grandmother) is a Shithole.

I think you are right in many ways Cools. However, the problem here is that commuters can't use the ferry from Woodside and the day trippers are not bountiful all year around, generally only in school holidays.
Locals are not going to pay £10 to do a 50 min trip (including the UBoat), too often, or even to use it as a form of transport , the service is not really geared up for that any longer.
Ask yourselves 'when did I last take the ferry cruise in Oct/Nov/Dec/Jan/Feb/ from Woodside ?' If you haven't or can't remember, then the chances are, that every one else's answer will be the same.
Nuff said. The ferries don't run on fresh air, and the service is not geared up for locals from Woodside.
The tourist thingy which was created with massive amounts of money from ERDF, seemed to fizzle out. A new landing stage and attraction at Seacombe, a new terminal at Pier Head and an old boat going cheap for Woodside.
Speaks volumes to me....

It seems to me that it is part of the scheme to dismantle of Birkenhead. what Hitler didn't achieve from the air has been achieved by the Town Hall.

The planners are busy grabbing Governments grant they find whether it is useful or not. Just because money is available for a project doesn't mean that the project is good for the area.

They also get bogged down with small detail and forget to look at the bigger picture.

There used to be events going on at Woodside on a regular basis.
Local History Fair, Tea Dances, Christmas Santa, Morris dancing, craft fairs, vintage car rally, Twin Town events, even the Beatles Festival (as it was then) was extended to Woodside one year, and so much more. With the events many more people would take a ferry trip whilst there, have a cup of tea or lunch, and all things ran hand in hand. Mostly events organised by the council but then the ferries closed their shop, the council closed Tourist office and the buses were virtually non-existent. Town Hall museum closed, Pacific road closed, Pumping house closed, and that area was basically handed over to the waifs and strays.

My view is that there will be a private company (Peel Holdings ?) to continue the passage and cruises from one of the terminals, but if that should happen, it will only be a matter of time before that too will run at a loss, and have the plug pulled on it for ever. 'Take overs' are not a long term proposition just a sticking plaster in this day and age.
Of course , that opinion might be completely wrong

20 Year Vision....

http://www.merseyferries.co.uk/about-us/Pages/20-year-vision-for-Mersey-Ferries.aspx

Peel definitely won't get involved apart from taking it over to asset strip it. If Peel don't already own the land then its a fair bet that they would want it.

Elsewhere I stated a few days ago that I'm wondering if Peel already have an influence over this.

Peel already have far too big a monopoly on our waterside areas!!!

I've just read the "20 year vision" and it makes grim reading. I doubt I'll be around to see it (thank goodness), but I'd be surprised if Woodside is still operational in five years, let alone twenty. I was there about a month ago with Pinzgauer, hoping to grab a coffee but when we saw that they expect disabled badge holders (me) to pay for parking, we quickly left.
As a matter of interest, I was just looking at the direct service timetable: who wrote that? Arrival and departure times are identical, so I suppose alighting and boarding is an instantaneous process.

Peel Group own Manchester Ship Canal, so they could find it beneficial to incorporate (tourism ) and the Ship Canal Cruises into their ever expanding arms. As you are DD, I am convinced this is all part of involvement with Peel Group on one level or another, and as per usual the public are kept near enough in the dark until the 11th hour. These decisions will have been discussed, proposed, contemplated for years with gradual minor movements in the direction to which the final crunch comes.

Does anyone know how a Royal Charter can become revoked.

Edward III gave the Royal Charter from Birkenhead to Liverpool 'for ever' in 14th century.

I think the opening up of the road in front of The Town Hall is/was part of the ferries plan.This council of hidden agendas greased through with nonsensical public consultations will have to go to plan B.I have read there is six million pounds worth of tram rail from The Liverpool big fail with Wirral written on them
(not really) but you know what I mean.Close Woodside and a tram to Seacome running on Liverpool's rusty failure will be our share of the big spend.

The issue is not revoking but whether its possible to enforce it if it gets ignored.

Peel are only interested in land, they don't do tourism, one of their decisions was to dump the tram system and the historic warships. They get slightly involved in tourism only when backed in a corner and have no choice to enable the much bigger non-tourism developments.

The loss of the historic warships was a crime in my eyes, they could have offered other locations at least on a temporary basis to give some breathing space.

I'm not sure that the Charter obliged the monks to operate a ferry, just that that it gave them the right to do so.

Yes, it gave them the right to do so, but also that there should be a ferry from Birkenhead to Liverpool crossing the arm of the river for ever.
Unfortunately I can't find a copy of the original charter.

It could be argued that the Charter was given to the Priory which is now Council and the license was transferred to Mersey Ferries which could be changed as time passes.

Tonight's news announced that Aberdeen Asset Management have bought the Albert Dock for £43million. Another international investment management group.
Lloyds Banking Group sold Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) to Aberdeen Asset Management in a £660m deal
Lloyds have a huge shareholding too.

Wheels within wheels . Can't keep this up it exhausts me. No wonder it takes years for all these things to get off the ground. Too many big boys involved. Wirral Waters 30 years ? They've taken 10 yrs to talk about it !

The charter was passed on to MPTE as was the Wallasey franchise

Thanks for that DD.

Dusty has probably got a point too, with regard to Town Hall.

This was 9 yrs ago. Unfortunately, I can't make out where the Town Hall is, if it is there at all and I'm sure the plans have been changed numerous times since.

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/1223990.woodside_plan_goes_on_display/

Pie in the sky: will never happen. Birkenhead will always be in the shadow of Liverpool and so much damage has been done to it over the years that the situation is irretrievable.
The town hall is at the top of the drawing, with the cupola on top.