Many Brits want to head to the continent in the first week of the English summer holidays. But that requires a lot of patience from them. What is the reason for the long traffic jams in Dover?
Dover – Due to stricter French border controls, there have again been long traffic jams at the important south-east English port of Dover on the English Channel.
In the first week of the English summer holidays, holidaymakers and lorry drivers waited around two hours on the motorway to catch their connections to France, Britain’s PA news agency reported on Thursday. Ferry providers warned of an extremely busy weekend. Customers should allow two hours for check-in and border controls alone. Demand will continue to increase.
The start of vacation for tens of thousands of Britons had already been delayed by several hours last weekend. The conservative government in London accuses France of not having deployed enough border guards. Paris, on the other hand, is not aware of any guilt: the reason for the traffic jams is Brexit, which the United Kingdom opted for. Since Great Britain left the EU, British passports have to be stamped when entering the EU – like those from other third countries. Because major vacation trips were not possible for a long time due to the corona pandemic, the effects are now being felt for the first time. dpa
