Traffic Modelling at the Port of Dover

The port of Dover has undergone many reincarnations over the centuries: from a fortified port complete with lighthouse in the first century AD, to a military Cinque Port in the middle ages, to the ferry and hovercraft terminal of the late twentieth century. Dover’s principal role now is as a Roll-on, Roll-off (Ro-Ro) Ferry Terminal, in which 2 ferry companies (P&O and DFDS) between them make up to 60 round trips a day to the French Ports of Calais and Dunkerque. They carry over 2.6 million lorries, 2 million cars, and 12 million people a year. The economic value in goods handled through the Port is up to 17% of the UK’s overall trade in goods. Based on 2016 projections, freight traffic is expected to increase by up to 40% in the next 30 years. However, the Dover Eastern Docks Ferry Terminal is small, around half a square kilometre, and expansion is challenging since it is hemmed in by the sea, the White Cliffs of Dover, and Dover town.