CONTROVERSIAL new ferries suffered disruption on their cross-Solent route after failing a vital safety test.

Wightlink was forced to suspend its Lymington to Yarmouth service after a crew was unable to retrieve a dummy that had been dropped into the sea to mimic someone falling overboard.

Passengers were left stranded after the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) ruled that the three ferries would have to remain in port.

Wightlink won permission to resume services a few hours later but the MCA ordered that each ferry should be shadowed by a rescue launch.

The company has since passed a second safety inspection and the temporary “lifeboats” were withdrawn.

It failed the first because the engine on its rescue RIB refused to start.

The incident has raised questions about the safety of the new vessels, which are much larger than their predecessors. Critics claim that they are a potential hazard to small pleasure craft using the crowded Lymington River.

The Lymington River Association (LRA) also says that the ferries are damaging environmentally sensitive sections of the waterway.

Mike Beggs, of the LRA, said: “It’s good to know that the authorities are checking up on Wightlink and making sure they operate safely. We look forward to the same diligence being applied in respect of the environmental damage the ferries are causing.”

New Forest West MP Desmond Swayne described the suspension as hugely inconvenient to passengers.

He added: “Leisure sailors say there have been an awful lot of incidents involving near-misses and what they describe as dangerous operations.

“I’ll be seeing the Lymington Harbour Commissioners in the next couple of weeks to see if these complaints have been logged and investigated.”

An MCA spokesman said: “The company failed to demonstrate an acceptable standard of safety in respect of the deployment and operation of the rescue boats.

“The subsequent suspension (of sailings) remained in place until the company demonstrated an acceptable standard of safety during drills.

“We allowed the vessels to operate with a condition that they had a suitable rescue craft shadowing them during the crossings.”

Wightlink would only say that the ferries were running normally following the installation of new rescue RIBs.