Half-term travel: Dover passengers 'stuck for hours' at border control - BBC

Queues of cars at border control in Port of Dover on 29 may
@GymnasticsNED

Some passengers trying to leave the UK via Dover say they have been stuck "for hours" due to a lack of open French border control booths.

Disruption began on Saturday as travellers experienced extremely busy roads and cancelled Easyjet flights as the half-term getaway began.

P&O Ferries said delays were "out of their control" as border controls were operated by French border police.

French authorities have been contacted for comment.

In a statement the Port of Dover said the situation was likely to remain in place for "a number of hours".

It said: "The Port is working with its French counterparts to move tourist traffic through the Border Controls as quickly as possible.

"The Port is very busy working with all the Ferry Operators to minimise delays once through the Border Controls."

Cars queuing at Port of Dover on 29 May

BBC presenter Kathryn Stanczyszyn was among travellers stuck in the port for over six hours due to the delays.

She said: "We arrived at 06:30 for an 08:30 crossing with DFDS and followed the advice on when to arrive but once there were held for between an hour-and-a-half and two hours at border control and missed out crossing.

"When we checked in we were told they couldn't get us on a boat until 11:55 and that boat was then delayed by another hour. It's been very stressful and tiring waiting that long."

On Sunday one passenger tweeted they had missed their 09:15 BST crossing with P&O despite queuing since 06:30 BST, and described having only two border control booths open as a "total outrage".

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter

Another passenger said they had missed their ferry after waiting almost two hours at border control.

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter

In addition to delays at border control, the Port of Dover warned that it had seen tourists arriving without tickets.

It added: "The Port is very busy and is seeing tourists arriving without tickets. Please do not travel to the Port of Dover unless you have a booked ticket for travel.

"Your Ferry Operator will put you on their next available sailings."

Dover MP Natalie Elphicke called for a review of National Highway's "sticking plaster approach" to traffic issues in the area.

On Twitter she said: "This week I called for action to be taken on Dover's roads. Dover is becoming almost as famous for its traffic jams as for its White Cliffs.

"It is concerning that the half-term holiday getaway brings traffic chaos to Dover once more."

The Kent Resilience Forum, the body in charge of traffic management and emergency planning, said more traffic officers had been sent to Dover on Sunday to "actively manage roads in the town to help get things moving".

Presentational grey line

Follow BBC South East on Facebook, on Twitter, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk

Related Internet Links

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Adblock test (Why?)



from "travel" - Google News https://ift.tt/saAgrdf
via IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

China to resume issuing passports, visas for travel abroad despite ... - Global News

Image
China says it will resume issuing passports for tourism in another big step away from anti-virus controls that isolated the country for almost three years, setting up a potential flood of Chinese going abroad for next month’s Lunar New Year holiday. The announcement Tuesday adds to abrupt changes that are rolling back some of the world’s strictest anti-virus controls as President Xi Jinping’s government tries to reverse an economic slump. Rules that confined millions of people to their homes kept China’s infection rate low but fueled public frustration and crushed economic growth. Read more: Beijing, Shanghai residents back to work as COVID outbreak continues in China Read More Beijing, Shanghai residents back to work as COVID outbreak continues in China The latest decision could send free-spending Chinese tourists to revenue-starved destinations in Asia and Europe for Lunar New Year, which begins Jan. 22 and usually is the country’s busiest travel season. But it al
Read more

What’s open, closed on the Civic Holiday in Hamilton, Burlington and Niagara Region - Global News

Image
Monday will be a day off for many Ontarians as the province celebrates a civic holiday on the first weekend of August 2022. The August long weekend is expected to bring daytime temperatures in the high 20s throughout the three days. Read more: ‘A long time coming’: Parents book COVID vaccines for little kids in Ontario Here’s a list of some common businesses and services that will be open and closed on the civic holiday: Administrative offices: Offices are closed on Monday. Licensing and bylaw services: Licensing and bylaw phone queue line will be closed on Monday. Service will resume on Tuesday. Green bin, garbage and recycling: No collection on Monday. Pickup will be one day later if it falls on or after the holiday. The city says all materials must be at the curb by 7 a.m.​ Community recycling centres and transfer stations will be closed. 3:07 Ottawa interim police chief says they’ve taken ‘unprecedented measures’ to prepare for possible Canada Day demon
Read more

Opinion: My miraculously pleasant flight shows what air travel can be - CNN

Image
Editor’s Note: Jill Filipovic is a journalist based in New York and author of the book “ OK Boomer, Let’s Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind .” Follow her on Twitter . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely her own. View more opinion on CNN. CNN  —  This past weekend, I had one of the most unusual experiences of my life: a day of air travel that was easy, sensible, efficient — dare I say pleasant. Passengers and airport staff alike were friendly and polite. The airplane seat offered enough room for both of my legs and both of my arms. We took off on time and landed early. My shoes stayed on the whole time I was at the airport. Jill Filipovic Courtesy of Jill Filipovic It was a reminder of what travel could be. It was also in Johannesburg, South Africa, not in the US, and happened under a particular set of circumstances — a domestic flight on the Saturday afternoon of a long holiday weekend when most travelers had already reached their destinations. I h
Read more