by Trevor Sturgess

Cross-Channel business has picked up a little but faces another tough year in 2010, according to a ferry boss.

The ferry market out of Dover has been hit by the downturn, with pressure on operators to cut overheads.

SeaFrance for example has been going through a major restructuring exercise with the prospect of job losses.

But Christophe Santoni, managing director of LD Lines, which operates a soon-to-be-replaced fast ferry between Dover and Boulogne is cautiously optimistic, buoyed by the news that it has increased carryings by more than a fifth in 2009.

The fast ferry will be replaced with a conventional ferry next month.

Mr Santoni told Lloyds List: "We have seen a small recovery in the market overall since May and initial indications are that there has been a good pace of demand in September.

"We have to be prepared for a difficult year in 2010 with the possibility that freight volumes will stabilise at the low level recorded in 2009."

He added that while most cross-Channel roll-on, roll-off operators ad seen freight volumes fall, LD Lines had boosted carryings by more than 20 per cent compared to last year, partly due to increased tonnage on the Portsmouth-Le Havre route.

He believes the main challenge for the roll-on, roll-off sector is to improve competitiveness with other modes of transport.

He continued: "This improved competitiveness will have to be coupled with the use of greener technologies, strengthening the position of the industry as the most environmentally friendly mode of transport."

Earlier this year, LD Lines scrapped its Dover-Dieppe conventional ferry service after only a few months of operation. It is replacing the fast ferry Norman Arrow with a conventional ferry because of capacity and speed-of-loading issues. Norman Arrow will switch to the Portsmouth-Le Havre route from Easter.