Throughout its 50 years of history, Fred. Olsen Express has built its activity on five core values: a service vocation, comfort, flexibility, speed, and sustainability. It is in the first where the challenge is undertaken to make the use of their services for travelling on their ships an accessible option for as many people as possible.
This commitment extends to both their ships and onshore facilities and their entire offering. The goal is for any traveller, regardless of their characteristics, to be able to use the services independently. As part of this responsibility, in February 2022 Fred. Olsen Express took a step further, becoming the first national shipping company to obtain the AENOR accessibility certificate for their Bajamar Express and Bañaderos Express trimarans. A milestone that they surpassed a year later by achieving Universal Accessibility certification for their entire fleet and facilities, based on the UNE 170001 standard. Ship accesses and interiors are designed for people with wheelchairs, reduced mobility, or prams to be able to access autonomously; a passenger assistance system for those needing help to move around inside the ship or ticket windows in sales terminals adapted to attend to any user are just some examples of the company’s accessibility efforts.
For Fred. Olsen Express’ Fleet Director, Juan Ignacio Liaño, “social commitment is a fundamental part of the shipping company’s reason for existence. It was what motivated the Olsen family to create the company half a century ago and it is also what drives us daily to continue striving to offer our customers the best service, attending to their specific needs. A good reflection of this conviction is our commitment to accessibility. In this vein, since 2022 we have been pioneers in installing a magnetic loop system, which started as a pilot project on the Bajamar Express trimaran and continues to be implemented across all our facilities. This way, travellers with hearing disabilities can clearly hear the signal warnings, creating safer and more autonomous journeys in our fleet.”
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Supporting Canarias during Times of Crisis
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Fred. Olsen is intertwined with the history of the archipelago and has been serving for 50 years, not only connecting the islands by sea daily and providing a transportation alternative, but also assisting in emergency situations or reinforcing their services to meet high demand. During key dates, the shipping company schedules extra trips to meet the needs of travellers and, in natural disasters or medical emergencies, makes its fleet available to emergency responders to transport their units or patients in need. The task of connecting the Canary Islands through a maritime highway is one the company has been carrying out since 1974.
