Quay and Cowes. This route is now served by high-speed, passenger-only catamarans. In 1867 Red Funnel instituted a service crossing the River Medina between Cowes and East Cowes. This service was operated by a series of small launches over the years. The service ceased on the outbreak of war in 1939 when the vessels involved were requisitioned by the Admiralty. In 1868 the company took over the Cowes Floating Bridge Company and operated the floating bridge until 1901. In 1885 the company bought the New Southampton Steam Towing Company and operated tugs and tenders, later under the subsidiary Red Funnel Towage. In 2002 Red Funnel Towage was sold to the Adelaide Steamship Company, later passing to Svitzer Marine. In 1946 Red Funnel acquired a controlling interest in Cosens & Co Ltd, a rival pleasure steamer operator based in Weymouth. This enabled the combined company to coordinate their excursions and also gave Red Funnel access to the Cosens' marine engineering and ship repair facilities. Excursions came to end in 1966 but the engineering side continued until sold off in 1990 to a management buy-out. In 2001 the company was sold to JP Morgan Partners by Associated British Ports Holdings, which had acquired the company in 1989 as a white knight to fend off a hostile takeover by Sally Lines. In 2004 the company was sold again in a management buy-out backed by the Bank of Scotland for £60 million. On 12 April 2007, the owners of Red Funnel (who include HBOS) announced that they were considering selling Red Funnel. In June of the same year, the company was sold to the Prudential's infrastructure specialist, Infracapital, in a deal valuing the business at more than £200m. In 2014, plans came to light for the relocation of Red Funnel's Southampton terminal, as part of the redevelopment of the derelict Royal Pier. The plans would include relocating the vehicle and foot passenger terminals to a new site at Trafalgar Dry Dock, also known as Pier 50. Plans were approved in 2016, and Red Funnel was supposed to relocate at the end of 2017. However, Southampton City Council terminated the deal to relocate the Royal Pier in August 2019, with the impact on the project to relocate the Red Funnel terminals unclear. In 2017 the company was sold to a consortium, including West Midlands Pension Fund and the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board. In the