DFDS and P&O Ferries apologized on Sunday morning for long waiting times at UK border controls. P&O said extra ships were being used for passengers who missed their sailings, saying in a statement: “We sincerely apologize for the waiting times at the port of Calais today. Checked vehicles were unable to reach loading lanes due to queues at border controls. This then causes the vehicles to back up past the ticket booths.” DFDS told passengers: “We expect long waiting times for checks to be completed, please take this into account when traveling to the port by taking sufficient food and water breaks before your arrival.” Asked if they expected delays to continue throughout Sunday, P&O added: “We expect the port of Calais to be very busy… There are queues of at least two hours to clear border control. Please allow as much time as possible on your journey.” Commuters have shared pictures on social media of long queues of cars full of families trying to get back to Dover ahead of the new school year which starts next week. Late on Saturday, one traveler took to Twitter to try to contact the Home Office, saying: “Waiting 260 minutes at Calais port with two young children. Longest delay on a 22:00 ferry because nine UK Border Force lanes were closed!?!” The delays come after a summer of disruption to cross-channel journeys for passengers departing and returning to the UK. Just last week, delays at passport controls at the port of Calais, extra traffic arriving via the Channel Tunnel, as well as the breakdown of a Eurotunnel train, resulted in thousands of holidaymakers being stranded for hours, many complaining that they had “No water and poor toilet facilities” as they queued. In August, an incident at Eurotunnel required passengers to disembark – leaving 100 vehicles behind – and walk onto a service train. Videos on social media showed holidaymakers walking through a secondary tunnel that runs alongside the 31-mile rail route between Britain and France, some with suitcases and dogs. In July, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss blamed France for delays at the port of Dover, citing shortages in French passport control staff, but others blamed red tape caused by Brexit. Boris Johnson later said: “These are not scenes that we believe are necessary to leave the EU” and called on France to carry out only “reasonable” border controls. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. The Guardian’s report on the delays indicated that one of the main causes was the need for British passport holders to have their passports stamped. Sources at Dover said this increased the average inspection time for each car from around 58 seconds to 90 seconds. While Brexit took effect in January 2021, the impact on tourism on the continent only became apparent as post-pandemic passenger numbers returned to normal volumes.
