P&O Ferries preparing to restart Dover-Calais route

P&O Ferries has said it is preparing to get its Pride of Kent and Spirit of Britain ships back in action on the Dover-Calais route "by next week".

The ferries will need to pass inspections by the Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA) before services can resume.

There has not yet been any confirmation that the inspections, which can take days, have been booked in.

Holiday-makers and lorry drivers have faced queues near Dover in recent days.

Bad weather and the disruption to P&O services had caused long queues of traffic as the Easter holidays started for some.

P&O Ferries had confirmed yesterday that all of its Dover-Calais routes would remain suspended this weekend, and that another ferry operator, DFDS, would not be able to take P&O customers.

The company expects the Pride of Kent and the Spirit of Britain will be sailing next week.

A P&O Ferries spokesperson said: "From this weekend, P&O Ferries are getting ready to resume services across a number of vital routes.

"P&O has been working closely with regulators to ensure our ships are safe to sail. P&O is looking forward to welcoming back vital services and we expect to have two of our vessels ready to sail on the Dover-Calais route by next week, subject to regulatory signoff," they added.

They also apologised to customers whose journeys had been cancelled or disrupted.