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Delays continue on roads to Dover due to French border checks Families stuck on roads into Dover told chaos will last until Monday
(about 9 hours later)
Holidaymakers heading to the continent continue to face hours of delays on roads to Dover in the wake of increased security checks imposed by French authorities on Friday. Holidaymakers trapped in their cars on the roads to Dover have been told the travel chaos will continue until Monday.
Although the checks have now been eased, there remains a considerable backlog of drivers seeking to take vehicles on ferries or trains to France as the school holidays commence. The first day of the holiday season turned into a traffic nightmare for travellers, with many stuck in traffic jams on the A2, A20 and M20 for up to 12 hours while they waited to cross the Channel and start their summer breaks in France and beyond.
Kent police have now closed one lane of the A20 northbound to allow the coastguard to distribute water to delayed motorists. Water has been provided by Kent county council. Kent police used helicopters and motorcyclists to provide 11,000 bottles of water to stranded motorists as temperatures hit 20C, while families and lorry drivers abandoned their vehicles to play football and walk along the roadside.
“Motorists are advised to take plenty of water and food, and to check with travel operators before making their trips. If possible, consider making alternative travel arrangements,” the force said. Musicians even set up impromptu concerts. A steel drummer and tambourine player entertained a small crowd on the M20, while a banjo player was spotted strumming on the back of a stationary trailer.
Assisting @MCA_media with water supplies to motorists A20 pic.twitter.com/VI4gt3iFjP Kent county council and the Highways Agency organised the partial closure of one carriageway northbound on the A20 to create an emergency ­corridor to hand out water and check on people stuck in cars and lorries.
waiting times are varying from 300 to 600 minutes. On arrival to the port the waiting time is approx. 110 minutes. Police said on Saturday night that disruption was set to continue “for the next 36 to 48 hours”.
P&O Ferries tweeted: Delays were blamed on staff shortages at French border controls at the port of Dover and Eurotunnel. France has increased the level of its security checks following the Nice attacks.
An additional sailing has been agreed for 21:20 to assist delayed customers travelling from Dover to Calais. The Port of Dover authority said: “The French border control booths have been seriously understaffed overnight with only three booths available for tourists out of a potential seven.
Charlie Elphicke, Conservative MP for Dover and Deal, said motorists were owed an apology, blaming poor management and a lack of forward planning. He was stuck in traffic for two hours on Friday night. “At one stage, only one French officer was available to check passengers on hundreds of coaches, resulting in each coach taking 40 minutes to process.
“For Dover to once again be plunged into traffic chaos is completely unacceptable. The Department for Transport and Home Office knew there would be heightened security checks in place in France. They should have been prepared. They weren’t,” he said. “The Port of Dover, which has no authority over French border operations, raised concerns over French manning levels with the UK government earlier this week and the government, in turn, raised the issue with its French counterparts.”
“The families stuck in this traffic nightmare should by now be across the Channel enjoying their holidays. They are owed an apology, as are the people of Dover. The extra French border checks are no excuse for poor transport management.” Signs of the impending traffic buildup were already visible by 6am on Saturday, when queues began to grow on the approach roads in Dover.
Hundreds of motorists on the A20 and the A2 in Kent were stranded overnight at the port of Dover after heightened French security checks created long tailbacks that continued into Saturday morning. Ferries were leaving half-empty to meet sailing times, although the ­ferry companies said they would be ­accommodating everyone who had missed their slot because of the queues.
Dale Savage, who was delayed for 12 hours as he made his way to his brother’s wedding, told BBC Breakfast “there was a bit of a camping spirit going on” among those stuck in the jam. By lunchtime, the port was advising travellers that waiting times were “varying from 300 to 600 minutes [five to 10 hours], with 110 minutes waiting once inside the port”.
“There are a lot of kids here, a lot of young children – a lot of people want to go on their holidays,” he said. “There are no real frustrations, the real problem was no one knew what was going on – we’re not quite sure why we were being held there – wasn’t sure whether it was an accident or something had happened further down in the port. On Saturday evening, Highways England warned of delays of up to 10 hours and police said traffic was queued back 12 miles out of Dover.
“There was a bit of a camping spirit going on, very much like Glastonbury earlier on in the year, but without the benefit of having a band to see at the end of it.” Motorists described their frustration at the delays and blamed British authorities for failing to warn them before they became trapped on the motorway.
Sonia Tutt, from Hythe in Kent, was travelling with more than a dozen people, including her 14-year-old twin daughters, to an equestrian event in Germany. There are seven ponies in her convoy, but no priority system in place for livestock, Tutt said. Sonia Tutt, who was travelling as part of a convoy headed to Luhmuhlen in Germany, described the situation on the A20 on Saturday morning as tragic.
As the temperature rises during the day the animals may have to be taken out of their trailers: “They are all quite happy at the moment, and we have come prepared. We will have to see what happens. The 38-year-old, from Hythe in Kent – travelling with more than a dozen people, including her 14-year-old twin daughters, to the Mounted Games European Championship – set out early on Saturday and finally arrived in Calais after 4pm.
“Situation is tragic,” she said. “I’m carrying horses on board, we have had no help or information, very poor situation.
“Everyone is out of their vehicles, kids are playing football. There’s not been one police car or anything. Even when we went to join the motorway there was no indication that when you joined you were likely to be sitting here all night.”“Everyone is out of their vehicles, kids are playing football. There’s not been one police car or anything. Even when we went to join the motorway there was no indication that when you joined you were likely to be sitting here all night.”
Joerg Walther and his family, from Giessen, near Frankfurt, had been stuck at a point five miles from Dover since 11am and said they were frustrated at how little information they had been given. They had been in a jam for more than seven hours before they were given water by police officers.
Walther said: “It’s worrying us that we don’t know the progress. We don’t know what’s going on and how long it’s going to be.”
The family were down to their last food supplies – a few scones, jam and some chocolates, all of which were intended as gifts for relatives. They said they were heartened when a local man came along and handed out pizza and fizzy drinks.
Walther said it took an ambulance almost an hour to reach an elderly man who became distressed on a nearby coach. He said: “We are really kind of enclosed, we can’t even turn around here.”
The shadow home secretary, Andy Burnham, said the government had been “caught ill-prepared once again”.
He said: “Theresa May should have anticipated heightened security checks in France; the Home Office and Department for Transport have been caught ill-prepared once again.
“This can’t carry on and it certainly can’t happen again. Ministers must take action to assist the thousands of holidaymakers who, through no fault of their own, are now stranded. It’s the beginning of the busiest holiday period and the government cannot allow this to continue.”
Charlie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for Dover and Deal, said the situation was “completely unacceptable” and should have been predicted.
Assisting @MCA_media with water supplies to motorists A20 pic.twitter.com/VI4gt3iFjP
He said: “The Department for Transport and Home Office knew there would be heightened security checks in place in France. They should have been prepared. They weren’t.
“The families stuck in this traffic nightmare should by now be across the Channel enjoying their holidays. They are owed an apology, as are the people of Dover who once again have to put up with traffic chaos in the town.
“The government needs to take control of the situation on the road and help families and vulnerable people stranded in the tailbacks. The extra French border checks are no excuse for poor transport management.”
A government spokesman said: “People’s safety is paramount. We are acutely aware of the effect the disruption is having in the Dover area and we continue to cooperate with the French authorities about a range of operational matters.
“We recognise the extraordinary security pressures that French law enforcement organisations are under at this time and are working closely with them and commercial partners to ensure passengers and hauliers of goods are processed as efficiently as possible on both sides of the Channel.
“We are also working closely with Highways England, Kent police and the Port of Dover to tackle the disruption.”