New infrastructure works at Rosslare Europort have started so to enable handling post-Brexit checks on goods in bound to the country from those outside of the EU.
The works at the strategically located port in Co. Wexford will as RTE News reports, include border control development facilities to check food products. In addition such goods at the port, operated by Irish Rail (Iarnród Éireann), will be checked for compliance with sanitary legislation and are designed to provide "protection for the EU single market," according to the Office of Public Works (OPW).
To cope with the surge in freight trade, the port project includes construction of 28 new buildings which will replace temporary infrastructure and processing facilities. These temporary structures in the port estate have been in place since the new Brexit regulations came into effect in 2021.
RTE has more on port recently named 'European Ferry Port of the Year 2023' at the Ferry Shipping Summit held in Malmo, Sweden.
For more than two years, Afloat has reported on Rosslare Europort's dramatic rise in new routes and increased sailings frequency to the mainland continent with 36 sailings per week compared to just 6 sailings in 2020.
The routes connect Zeebrugge in Belgium, Dunkerque, Le Havre, Cherbourg in France and Bilbao, Spain which involve five operators: Brittany Ferries, DFDS, Finnlines, Irish Ferries and Stena Line.
As for routes to the UK they are to Fishguard and Pembroke in south Wales which total to 58 sailings weekly.
In addition to a trade car operator, Neptune Lines on the route of Santander-Zeebrugge-Le Havre-Portbury (Bristol)-Rosslare from where the ro-ro ship returns to the port in northern Spain.
