Ditzum – Petkum ferry

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The Ditzum ferry at the Petkum pier

The Ditzum – Petkum ferry (sometimes also known as the Petkum – Ditzum ferry ) is the only ferry connection that still exists today across the Unterems in Lower Saxony .

geography

The ferry connects the small port town of Ditzum , a district of the municipality of Jemgum in the Rheiderland ( district of Leer ), with Petkum , a district of the independent city of Emden in the northern part of East Frisia . The two places are almost at the same geographical length on the opposite banks of the Unterems below (west) the Ems barrage just before the river flows into the Dollart .

history

The ferry service has existed for about 600 years, although initially only the Petkum chiefs held the ferry rights. In 1711 the parish of Ditzum got the right to carry out ferry traffic. Until the construction of the Ditzumer Mühle (1768) the transport monopoly for grain from the fertile polder areas to the Petkumer Mühle was an important source of income for the ferry leaseholders. Around 1785 the ferry service was carried out with two "bulls" (open barges) and three boats, in 1820 the ferry fleet comprised eight vehicles (two bulls, two large and two small sailing boats, two row boats). The ferry operation was based on the tides (high tide: upstream, low tide: downstream). The railway line to Emden , which was opened in 1854 and relocated the flow of goods from the Netherlands via Ditzum to Weener and the Leerort train station, lost sales. Only with the train station in Petkum and the road from Leerort to Ditzum (1873) did ferry traffic regain importance as a connection between Emden and Leer. In 1871 a sandbank formed in the river, which meant that a direct connection between Ditzum and Petkum was no longer possible. The extensive bypassing of the obstacle extended the transfer times to up to two hours in some cases, so that the ferry service had to be handled alternately with two ships.

Ferry

Since the traffic had been greatly extended by the bypass, a “Committee for the Improvement of the Ferry” was formed in 1890, which aimed to set up a more powerful steam ferry. On May 2, 1897, the first steam ferry built at the Meyer shipyard in Papenburg was put into service. This had to be discontinued in 1922 because the municipality of Ditzum, as the owner, could not raise the financial means to maintain or modernize the ferry. Until 1924, workers from Ditzum commuting to Emden had to row across the Ems twice a day. Only in the spring of 1924 did the ferry service get going again. But now it turned out "that the steamer no longer met the requirements due to the long period of inactivity and its age" . Therefore, the municipality decided to build a new one. The Ditzum motor ferry, which is still in operation today , was also built at Meyer Werft in 1926 and cost 58,500 Reichsmarks . In 1954 the originally installed steam engine was replaced by a diesel engine. Since May 1, 1971, the ferry connection is no longer operated by the municipality of Ditzum, but by the district of Leer. The ferry was restored and technically improved in 2005/06 by the Diedrich shipyard in Oldersum for € 750,000, and the loading area was also slightly enlarged. With a length of 24.29 m and a maximum width of 5.96 m, it now has a loading area of ​​23 m² and is therefore able to carry three cars (the third one has to be placed sideways) with a maximum total weight of four Tons or 120 people.

Timetable

In the summer half of the year, the ferry runs every hour with deviations in the morning hours and a break at lunchtime. In the winter months, traffic is mostly limited to the morning and afternoon hours. A crossing takes about 20 minutes.

Importance for infrastructure and tourism

The ferry is the shortest connection between the northern and Rheiderland the space Emden, since the next opportunity to Emsquerung of 17 km upstream flow (south) located Ems at idle is. Originally, the ferry was mainly used to transport goods and, more occasionally, people. With the creation of industrial jobs in Emden, the ferry was mainly used by commuters, who still make up the majority of passengers in the early hours and in the winter months. From Petkum there is a regular bus connection to the city center of Emden. In the meantime, tourists, especially bikers and cyclists, form an essential part of the passengers in the summer months. The national or international long-distance cycle paths Emsradweg , Dollardroute and the North Sea coast cycle path run through Ditzum or take the ferry .

literature

  • Gerhard Kronsweide: Ems ferry Ditzum - A means of transport defied the centuries. In: Rheider Deichacht and Sielacht Rheiderland (ed.): Ditzum / Ems A Sielhafen in the course of change. Rheider Deichacht and Sielacht Rheiderland, Weener 1988, pp. 143–153.

Web links

Commons : Fehre Ditzum  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Erich Bolinius: Ems ferry Petkum - Ditzum. Eemsfähr Ditzem / Petjem (in Plattdüütsch ), accessed on February 16, 2017.
  2. ↑ a b Information on the official homepage of the district of Leer
  3. ↑ Ems ferry commutes again in Rheiderland , on Focus Online on March 21, 2015
  4. ↑ Current timetable , accessed on February 16, 2017

Coordinates: 53 ° 19 ′ 17.8 ″  N , 7 ° 16 ′ 26 ″  E