Ahead of a public inquiry into toll increases, the Sandbanks Ferry company has backtracked on its proposal to charge BH19 residents for using the approach road to the ferry, which links Studland with Sandbanks in Dorset.
In January 2025, a public inquiry will decide whether the ferry company will be allowed to increase the ferry tolls, reduce the bulk buy ticket discount which most favours local residents, and reintroduce a road toll for Ferry Road in Studland.
The ferry company wants to introduce a charge for vehicles just using Ferry Road, equivalent to the ferry toll. Pedestrians, cyclists and now BH19 residents will be exempt
Waive the road toll for BH19 residents
The ferry company says if it doesn’t get its way to increase tolls and reintroduce a road only toll, then it won’t have enough money in its ferry replacement reserve to buy a new ferry in 2034, as planned.
Now, only weeks before the start of a public inquiry on Tuesday 21st January 2025 at the Poole Harbour Commissioners building in Poole, the ferry company says if it gets the go ahead to charge a road only toll, it will waive the cost for residents within the BH19 area which mainly covers Studland and Swanage, as long as they pay an annual £5 admin fee.
Those living in Purbeck outside the BH19 area includes those living in Corfe Castle, Rempstone, Kimmeridge, Church Knowle, Wareham and one end of Harman’s Cross.
Chair of the Sandbanks Ferry Company Mike Kean (left) at the community engagement event in Swanage
“Decided to offer an additional concession”
In a statement the Sandbanks Ferry Company said:
“As a consequence of our public event last Wednesday and wider conversations, we have taken on board feedback from our community and decided to offer an additional concession to local residents regarding the road only toll.
“Should the implementation of the road toll be approved, those in a BH19 postcode will be offered free use of Ferry Road.
“We propose to administer this by asking local residents to visit the ferry office with their vehicle’s original V5C (Vehicle Logbook / Registration Certificate) verifying their BH19 postcode.
“Following payment of a small admin fee (currently £5), we will register that vehicle for free use of Ferry Road for a whole year. After every 12 months, residents can return to the ferry office and repeat the same process.”
The ferry company is proposing the toll for a car will rise from £5.30 to £6.26 followed by annual CPI inflation increases, while the toll for a lorry will rise from £10.60 to £12.52 followed by annual CPI inflation increases
Increase ferry toll in line with inflation
As the ferry operates under an Act of Parliament, any changes like increasing the fares have to be approved by the UK Government’s secretary of state for transport, hence the latest public inquiry.
There have been public inquiries in 2004, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2018, 2021 and now 2025, which are time consuming and expensive for both the ferry company and the objectors which includes the publicly funded local councils.
It was agreed at the last public inquiry in 2021 that the ferry company could increase vehicle tolls by around three percent a year until 2031. This was estimated to be broadly in line with future inflation. However inflation shot up in 2022 to over 10 percent.
Now the ferry company wants to scrap the three percent cap and link back dated toll increases to RPI inflation and future increases to CPI inflation.
It also wants to reduce the discount in the bulk purchase of tickets from 28 percent for 10 tickets and 32 percent for 50 tickets, to 24 percent and 28 percent respectively, phased in over a four year period.
The additional new proposal by the ferry company, to reintroduce a road toll along Ferry Road, using ANPR (automatic numberplate recognition) has raised both complex legal and logistical questions.
Chair of Studland Parish Council Nick Boulter addressing a meeting of concerned residents in Studland village hall
“Sideshow to distract us from the ferry company’s main aim”
Chair of Studland Parish Council Nick Boulter said:
“Residents in Studland will be happy with this latest move by the ferry company to drop the road only toll for those who live within the BH19 area but it’s all very strange.
“Without doubt, those most likely to pay the original proposed road toll would have been residents in BH19, which makes it hard to fathom what will be achieved by introducing the scheme now.
“Financially speaking this makes the road toll economically dead in the water. Is it a ploy to divide the objectors – BH19 from the rest of Purbeck?
“This is yet another change to the ferry company’s proposals – a resubmission on a resubmission. I think most people will see through this latest move as a sideshow to distract us from the ferry company’s main aim to further increase the toll for the ferry.
“The best thing the ferry company can do now is to withdraw the whole road toll proposal.”
Lloyd Hatton MP at a meeting with residents, on this occasion about housing
“I remain firmly opposed to the proposed toll hikes”
Welcoming the concession for BH19 residents to minimise the proposed road access restrictions on Ferry Road, the Member of Parliament for South Dorset, Lloyd Hatton said:
“At long last, the ferry company is listening to our community campaign challenging these proposals.
“While this is a step in the right direction, I remain firmly opposed to the proposed toll hikes and I will be attending the public inquiry in the new year to continue making the case against them.”
Further information
- Documents about the toll proposals are on the Sandbanks Ferry website
