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Wightlink is a ferry company operating routes between Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in southern England. Their core routes are car ferries from Lymington to Yarmouth (40 minutes) and Portsmouth to Fishbourne (45 minutes). A fast passenger-only catamaran operates between Portsmouth Harbour and Ryde Pier Head (taking 22 minutes), and directly links into the Island Line rail line. ==History== Wightlink and its forerunners have provided ferry services to and from the Isle of Wight for more than 160 years.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=History )〕 In the early nineteenth century, ferries ran to the island from Lymington and Portsmouth. Later, steam ferries operated a circular route around Lymington, Yarmouth, Cowes, Ryde and Portsmouth. When the rail companies became involved they concentrated on two direct routes, Lymington – Yarmouth and Portsmouth – Ryde.〔 Ownership of the ferries eventually passed from the British Railways Board to Sealink UK Limited. In 1984 Sealink UK Limited was denationalised and the operating name became Sealink British Ferries, which was subsequently bought by the Bermuda based Sea Containers Ltd. When Stena Line bought Sealink British Ferries in 1990, the Isle of Wight ferries remained with Sea Containers, as ‘Wightlink’.〔 In June 1995 Wightlink was the subject of a management buy-in. In 2005 it was bought by the Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund for an estimated £240,000,000.〔 In 2004, Wightlink renewed its sponsorship of the Wightlink Raiders ice hockey team, In October 2006 Wightlink announced its intention to build two new ferries for the Yarmouth to Lymington route. These ships are slightly bigger than their predecessors, with extra vehicle space, but will only accommodate 360 passengers compared to 500 on the older vessels. Wightlink later announced that a third new ferry would enter service in spring 2009. A dispute with some Lymington residents led to delay and threatened the viability of the route. In November 2008, the service was reduced so only two ships were required, allowing for the delay in the introduction of the new vessels.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=New Lymington Timetable ) 〕 Sea trials were not complete by November 2008 and introduction became pressing with the expiry of safety certificates on the previous fleet. Wightlink proposed interim arrangements enabling them restricted use of the new ferries until the trials can be completed in full.〔 〕 In March 2008 Wightlink revealed that an order has been placed with FBMA Marine to construct two new passenger catamarans for the Portsmouth to Ryde service, to replace the three craft currently employed. They entered service in 2009. From May 2008 Wightlink introduced a fuel surcharge on all crossings, linked to the price of Brent Crude oil. However, in November 2008 the surcharge dropped to zero following the sharp reduction in crude prices during the credit crunch and as of November 2009 is still at zero. Wightlink planned to spend £17.5M on improving their Portsmouth-Fishbourne route.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Portsmouth to Fishbourne Investment )〕 This involved remodelling the terminal facilities at both Fishbourne and Portsmouth. Their flagship was to have its upper car deck adjusted so vehicles access it directly from on-shore ramps. Two of the older ferries were to be stretched in length by 12 metres, with upper car decks similar to ''St Clares being added, replacing movable mezzanine decks. Of the remaining two ferries, has been sold and was used mainly for freight until she too was sold.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Portsmouth to Fishbourne Car Ferry Service – The Way Forward )〕 On Monday 16th February 2015, Wightlink was sold from the Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund to Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Partners for an undisclosed sum.〔http://www.iwcp.co.uk/news/news/wightlink-bought-by-balfour-beatty-infrastructure-partners-76519.aspx〕 On 15th May 2015, Wightlink announced that it was investing £45m in the Portsmouth<>Fishbourne route. They plan to purchase a new ferry, upgrade St Clare and modify the terminals at both ends to facilitate double-deck loading. 〔http://www.wightlink.co.uk/iow/pressrelease/wightlink-invests-45-million-new-ship-port-facilities/〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Wightlink」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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