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Swansea Docks is an Atlantic shipping port in Swansea, south Wales. It is located immediately south east of Swansea city centre. In the mid 19th century, the port was exporting 60% of the world\'s copper from factories situated in the Tawe valley.[1] Today it is just a minor port in the UK and the northern areas are undergoing re-development into an urban area. The working docks area is currently owned and operated by Associated British Ports.
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Increases in industrial output and in trade in copper, zinc, iron and tinplate combined with the developments in shipping (whereby steamships of greater tonnage were replacing smaller sailing vessels) meant that by the late 1800s Swansea\'s harbour was in desperate need of expansion.
The Swansea Harbour Trust commissioned the construction of the Prince of Wales Dock, the first on the east side of the river. Opened in 1881 by the Prince & Princess of Wales (later Edward VII and Queen Alexandra), it was not completed until 1882. An additional expansion occurred in 1898. The North Quay frontage was let to the Great Western Railway, the Neath and Brecon Railway and the Rhondda and Swansea Bay Railway company, which linked the Dolais Valley and Rhondda valley coalfields directly with the docksPrince of Wales Dock - Swansea Heritage Net - History in pictures.
Docks which have existed or still exist in the complex are:
SA1 Swansea Waterfront is the marketing name given to the brownfield development area located in northern part of Swansea Docks. The area is located directly to the South East of the city centre. It is bordered by the Fabian Way to the North and covers the Prince of Wales Dock area. As of 2007, it is one of the largest urban re-development zones in Europe.[citation needed]
The development will be a commercial and residential mix. The forecast ouputs are 2900 new jobs, about 2000+ new apartments and houses, 65,000 m² (700,000 sq ft) of business/offices; 29,000 m² (312,000 sq ft) of commercial leisure; 26,400 m² (284,200 sq ft) of hotel development; 23,200 m² (249700 sq ft) of institutional facilities; 1,015 m² (10930 sq ft) of on shore marina facilities.
As of 2007, completed projects include:
Projects under construction or in the pipeline include:
The Norwegian Church is a Grade II listed building originally located at Newport Docks. The building is comprised of a Seaman’s Mission to the west end and a single gothic church to the east end. It was originally built as a place of worship for Norwegian sailors when they visited the UK. It was relocated to Swansea in 1910 at a site directly opposite the Sainsbury\'s supermarket on the River Tawe. With the redevelopment of the district, the building had to be relocated again. The building was covered in scaffolding and carefully dismantled and relocated alongside two other historic listed buildings - the Ice House and J Shed. The building is presently being used as a local art exhibition and will shortly be marketed for a coffee shop or similar use.
There is a roll on/roll off ferry terminal in the western part of the docks. Up until 2007, a regular ferry to Ringaskiddy in County Cork, Ireland departed from here. The ferry is operated by Swansea Cork Ferries. The ferry service is suspended for 2007 and the ferry company hope to resume the service in 2008.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia
