HARWICH-ESBJERG

140 years of Anglo-Danish history are set to end on 29 September, following DFDS' announcement that it will then close the North Sea ferry between the two (admittedly unexciting) ports. The reason is a toxic combination of competition from low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and Norwegian, which have caused passenger numbers to drop by some 75% from 300,000 passengers a year to around 79,000; and fuel costs, which are already high and which are set to rise by some 40% next year because of new E.U. environmental regulations. DFDS is losing money on the route, and doesn't expect that to change in the future.

The "England ferry", as it is known here in Denmark, is not my cup of tea. The North Sea can be an unforgiving place, even in the summer, and I am prone to sea sickness. Every time I have used it, I have felt at best queasy, at worst positively nauseous. My colleague on the board of the local cinema has just been on a big Caribbean and trans-Atlantic cruise. He loved it; it would be my idea of hell.

However, although I will stick to Ryanair in the future, I still think it's a shame that the ferry will go. Flying has its own disadvantages (cramped spaces, low baggage allowances, intrusive security, to name but three), and a number of people refuse to fly out of fear. It seems a bit odd that in removing the one feasible alternative of reaching the U.K., the number of transport choices for consumers is reduced.

Walter Blotscher