Travellers faced delays of up to 17 hours between Friday (31 March) and Sunday (2 April), which was put down to slow processing and an unexpected number of coaches.
First reported on Friday, the disruption became so serious over Saturday and Sunday that several coach companies turned around and returned home because of “critical” delays.
According to the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), coaches were held back behind cars and HGVs, resulting in queues of between eight and 24 hours.
“Something’s clearly wrong when a coach is treated unfairly compared with other vehicles,” said CPT chief executive Graham Vidler. “The procedures to enter the EU should not have a negative impact on people who don’t want to fly or drive by car to continental Europe.”
A government spokesperson told TTG that, over the past two days, situation has “improved significantly” with coaches being processed “at a much quicker rate.”
Vidler’s comments come after Downing Street admitted on Monday (3 April) that Brexit contributed to the delays, as UK passports now have to be manually checked and stamped by French officials.
“We recognise there are new processes in place – that’s why authorities were given a long time to prepare for the new checks, including during the transition period, of course,” said the prime minister’s spokesperson. “And we are in discussion with our French counterparts about how we can further improve the flow of traffic.”
TTG has approached the Port of Dover for further comment.
