Terminal 5 chaos "could have boosted ferries"

The widely-reported chaos which marred the opening of the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport earlier this year may have benefited the ferry industry, one expert has said.

According to the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA), those travelling by ferry have realised by doing so they can avoid the drama of the airport and take their proverbial kitchen sink with them.

William Gibbons, director of the PSA, said: "When you take your car on a ferry you can take as many passengers as you can legally get in a car and as much luggage as you want.

"You don't have to worry about weight, you don't have to worry about hand luggage, you don't have to worry about excess charges."

He added that another downside of flying is that the low-cost airlines have "really ratcheted up" excess charges on baggage, meaning travellers have to pay to put their luggage in the hold.

A study conducted by IRN Research for the PSA revealed that the number of UK travellers using ferries for the 12 months leading up to February 2008 totalled 3,529,000, which was a 3.5 per cent increase on the previous year.