A car being loaded by crane onto the SS Autocarrier
at the Admiralty Pier.
Spurred by the success of Captain Townsend’s
‘Forde’, the Southern
Railway ordered their own purpose built car ferry.
The ‘Autocarrier’ entered service on 30 March 1930,
leaving the Admiralty Pier
a few minutes before her rival from the Camber
on the eastern side of the harbour, just as the
‘Forde’ was about to make her first run of the season.
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There was special lunch
for the VIPs on board on arrival at Calais and the Southern
Railway representative took the opportunity to have
a sly dig at Townsend’s service. The ‘Autocarrier’ was,
he pointed out, not second hand, and would stay on the
service whether it was profitable or not. Brave words,
but in the light of the increase in such traffic, not
with much risk attached. There were already two other
Southern Railway ships carrying cars to the Continent,
a midnight cargo boat to Calais and the return 4am sailing
from Calais.
The ‘Autocarrier’ was the first railway
owned cross-Channel car ferry and could carry 307 passenger
and 26 cars. In the summer she operated Dover to Calais,
switching to Folkestone to Boulogne in winter. In 1940
she was at Dunkirk
rescuing troops, then later became a recreation ship
for men of the Royal Navy, complete with a large cinema
and canteen.
After refitting in 1945, the ‘Autocarrier’
ran first as a cargo ship from Southampton, returning
to Dover in 1946. She operated on a number of routes
in the following years, including between Southampton,
St Malo and Le Havre. She was finally withdrawn in July
1954.
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Southern Railway advert for the car ferry service.
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