Extra ferries in port of Dover to eliminate long queues for crossing the Channel | Abroad

A spokesman for the port says she hopes the backlog will be made up by Sunday afternoon. According to the port, the delays are due to bad weather, increasing waiting times at customs and the large influx of passengers due to the holiday period.

Shipping company P&O Ferries informed passengers of the delays in a tweet on Saturday evening. “We apologize for the wait times this weekend.” “We have added extra sailings at night to clear the backlog. As soon as the buses reach our check-in desks, they go on to the next crossing to Calais.

Buses at the cruise terminal will still have to wait up to 3.5 hours before they can run to Dover Port. Once they are in the buffer zone at the entrance to the port, the waiting time is about 3 to 4 hours.

Since Friday it has been very busy at the port of Dover, resulting in long traffic jams. “Bus traffic in the port is experiencing major delays due to border control. The ferry operators are directing arriving bus traffic to alternative waiting areas, so that the existing backlog can be cleared,” the port of Dover reported on Twitter on Friday. Waiting times at border control are up to five to six hours.

Ferry company DFDS warned its customers on Friday evening that “due to the large crowds” in the port of Dover, the waiting time for boarding is about seven hours in the port. “The delays experienced by buses tonight are due to the time it takes for French customs to check each vehicle, which unfortunately is beyond our control,” said competitor P&O Ferries.

On the other side of the Channel, the Port of Calais said there was a “risk of delay” as traffic to Dover has been “disrupted by weather conditions”.