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Pier railway and ferry in Hampshire, England

Hythe Pier, the Hythe Pier Railway and the Hythe Ferry provide a link between the English port city of Southampton and the Hampshire village of Hythe on the west side of Southampton Water. It is used both by commuters and tourists, and forms an important link in the Solent Way and E9 European coastal paths. The ferry is the only one remaining of the various ferries that once linked Southampton with points around Southampton Water. The pier, railway and ferry service are currently operated by Blue Funnel Ferries of Southampton. In October 2016 the previous owners (White Horse Ferries) warned their staff of potential redundancy which suggested an uncertain future from the pier and ferry service. After months of talks Lee Rayment of Blue Funnel completed negotiations to acquire the Pier, Train and Ferry with operations starting on 21 April 2017. The railway is the oldest continuously operating public pier train in the world. The ferry was due to stop operating from the end of 2022 but services continued in the hope that a new owner could be found. In September 2023 the Solent ferry operator Red Funnel announced that it had taken over the operation.

Hythe Pier stretches from the centre of Hythe to the deep water channel of Southampton Water, making it the 7th longest pier in the British Isles. It is approximately 16 feet (5 m) wide, and carries a pedestrian walkway and cycleway on its northern side and the Hythe Pier Railway on its southern side. A company was formed to construct a pier in 1870 and in 1871 it obtained an Act of Parliament in order to do so. A second company called the Hythe Pier & Hythe & Southampton Ferry company was formed in late 1874. Originally there was a toll house at the landward end of the pier, and this was replaced by the present ticket office in the first decade of the 20th century. The pier and its associated structures were awarded Grade II listed status in August 2021.

A local community group held a public meeting on 24 November 2016 and announced its intentions to "Save Hythe Pier and ferry" by setting up a Charitable Community Benefit Society under the name of "Hythe Pier Heritage Association. In February 2017 Hampshire County Council made an emergency payment to White Horse Ferries to allow them to charter a replacement ferry while MV Great Expectations underwent maintenance. On 6 February 2019, 140 years after the original pier construction, Blue Funnel announced they intended to hand over the pier to the Hythe Pier Heritage Association.

On 30 July 1885, the pier was hit by the schooner Annie, damaging five of the pier's piles. The pier's piles were again damaged in 1945 when an infantry landing craft collided with it. In the evening of 1 November 2003 at 18:08, the dredger collided with the pier, tearing a 150 feet (46 m) hole through the midsection and isolating the pier head from the land. The dredger did not collide with the pier train, and there were no casualties. The incident occurred a few minutes after a crowd of people were heading home after a football match. Repairs to the pier were carried out by Dudley Barnes Marine with Beckett Rankine as the designer; the cost was £308,000 and the pier reopened on 7 January 2004. The master of the dredger was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to an act likely to cause the death of or serious injury to any person while under the influence of drink and causing damage to a structure while under the influence of drinking. On 13 May 2016, the ferry Uriah Heep collided with the pier damaging the ferry's wheelhouse and requiring it to be withdrawn from service.