Twelve Quays is a ferry terminal and business park which is located between East Float and the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed par ...

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...

, in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Twelve Quays separates Woodside from

Seacombe Seacombe () is a district of the town of Wallasey, on the Wirral Peninsula, England. Administratively, Seacombe is a ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside. Before local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974, it was pa ...

History

Twelve Quays is named from the quaysides which served the adjoining

Morpeth Dock Morpeth Dock is a dock at Birkenhead, Wirral Peninsula, England. The dock is situated between the River Mersey and Egerton Dock. History Built between 1844 and 1847, it is named after Lord Morpeth, the 7th Earl of Carlisle, who was the First ...

Egerton Dock Egerton Dock is a dock at Birkenhead, in England. The dock is situated between East Float and Morpeth Dock, within Birkenhead's dock system. History The dock was the second named as Egerton Dock along the Mersey, the first being the forerunn ...

, Alfred Dock,

Wallasey Dock The Wallasey Dock, was a dock at Birkenhead, Wirral Peninsula, England. The dock was accessed via East Float to the west, until Wallasey Dock was filled at the turn of the millennium. History Construction began in 1874 and the dock opened in 1 ...

and East Float, as well as quaysides on the River Mersey. Wallasey Dock was infilled in 2001, to expand the land area of the site. The area was an

artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...

, until the infilling of the Morpeth Dock entrance. Twelve Quays includes the former Wallasey Dock Impounding Station, and the Central Hydraulic Tower. Several bridges connect Twelve Quays to Birkenhead and

, two of these being along Tower Road and one at the entrance to Egerton Dock. Another of the bridges along Tower Road was removed, when the East Float entrance to Egerton Dock was infilled.

Ferry terminal

The ferry terminal was opened in Summer 2002 at a cost of £25m. It is used for transporting passengers and freight between

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wi ...

and

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

. Owned by

Mersey Docks and Harbour Company The Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC), formerly the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board (MDHB), owns and administers the dock facilities of the Port of Liverpool, on the River Mersey, England. These include the operation of the enclosed nort ...

, the terminal replaced facilities at Brocklebank and

Canada dock Canada Dock is a dock on the River Mersey, England, and part of the Port of Liverpool. It is situated in the northern dock system in Kirkdale. Canada Dock consists of a main basin nearest the river wall with three branch docks and a graving ...

s at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

& reduces voyage times between Liverpool and Ireland by 90 minutes. Twelve Quays has a floating landing stage in the river that can take two ro-ro ferries at the same time. The terminal provides vehicle parking space on the site of the former

Bus link to Hamilton Square railway station

A courtesy bus operates from the terminal to a stop outside Birkenhead Hamilton Square railway station (and vice versa) in connection with Stena Line ferry sailings to and from Belfast. Through ticketing is available.

References

External links

* * * {{Birkenhead docks Birkenhead docks Transport in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral Maritime Transport in Merseyside