EU border chaos feared at Dover crossing as busiest summer weekend looms
Technical issues with the EU's entry-exit system have caused massive congestion on Dover's roads, with concerns of traffic chaos as the port of Dover faces its biggest test yet of new EU border controls.
Intelligence analysis by Llama
The start of the peak summer season is set to bring millions of drivers on to British roads, with concerns of traffic chaos as the port of Dover faces its biggest test yet of new EU border controls. The semi-functioning entry-exit system (EES) is credited, along with the heatwaves and fears about flights after the war in Iran, with helping push British domestic holidays to its highest…
Imagine you're going on a big trip to France with your family. You're all excited to get to the port of Dover and catch your ferry. But when you get there, there's a huge traffic jam because the computers that are supposed to make it easy for people to get through the border aren't working. This means that you and your family might have to wait a long time to get through the border, which could be really frustrating.
Analysis
A £40m Automated Facility in Disarray
The new £40m automated facility built to speed through passengers is unable to operate due to software problems in the technology in France. This has led to concerns that the additional time needed to create a file for each visitor could still lead to long queues at the border, despite the French police aux frontières (PAF) not being able to carry out the biometric registration required by EES.
The Impact on Holidaymakers
About 7,500 cars travelling to France are expected at Dover on Friday, and 10,000 on Saturday, as peak summer season begins. The port has urged holidaymakers to use only main roads when driving to the port, and arrive no more than two hours before their booked sailing. Eurotunnel, operator of LeShuttle, which takes vehicles through the Channel tunnel, said that it did not anticipate delays as summer traffic built up.
The Road Ahead
As at Dover, border police will still not be registering biometric information from its car passengers for EES this summer. Eurotunnel has likewise spent millions of pounds on automated processing kiosks which cannot yet be brought into service. The RAC and Inrix expect the worst of the traffic on Friday in areas of the M25 around Greater London linking to the M3 to the southwest, as more than 14 million drivers make a getaway this weekend.
Key points
- Technical issues with the EU's entry-exit system have caused massive congestion on Dover's roads.
- The port of Dover is bracing for long tailbacks as thousands of holidaymakers join lorries at Britain's main Channel ferry crossing from 6am.
- Eurotunnel, operator of LeShuttle, said it did not anticipate delays as summer traffic built up.
- The RAC and Inrix expect the worst of the traffic on Friday in areas of the M25 around Greater London linking to the M3 to the southwest.
If the technical issues with the EU's entry-exit system are resolved quickly, it's possible that the traffic chaos at the port of Dover could be minimized, and holidaymakers could have a smoother journey.
However, if the technical issues persist, it's likely that the traffic chaos at the port of Dover will continue, and holidaymakers may face long delays and frustration.
