zoomImage Courtesy: P&O; Ferries

P&O Ferries has handled the highest volume of freight in five years on its Larne-Cairnryan service in 2016.

The ferry and logistics company, which operates the shortest and most frequent crossings between Northern Ireland and mainland Britain, handled 206,700 freight units on the route during the last 12 months. This figure represents a 7.5 per cent increase on the previous year (192,200 units).

In a further indicator of the reliability of P&O Ferries’ service, 2016 was the first ever year in which none of the 4,774 sailings scheduled from the port of Larne was cancelled, with 97 per cent of departures within ten minutes of their published time.

P&O Ferries operates seven sailings a day between Larne and Cairnryan in Scotland. The regular daily service provides a bridge for goods being transported between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and Britain, and also on to the continent via its connecting services from Dover, Tilbury, Hull and Teesport.

P&O Ferries is a pan-European ferry and logistics company, sailing on eight major routes between Britain, France, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Holland and Belgium.

It operates 20 vessels which carry more than 10 million passengers, 1.6 million cars and 2.2 million freight units every year.