The Port’s delays were caused by a combination of factors, including strong winds, a high volume of coaches, and slow border control processing times.
Coach bookings for the Easter period were 15% higher than expected, and boarding coachloads of separate passengers takes much longer than boarding cars. Furthermore, processing times had increased dramatically since leaving the EU, and each individual passport had to be inspected and stamped after Brexit.
Passengers, particularly coach passengers, were severely inconvenienced, with some having to wait up to 14 hours to board their ferry to France. Some coaches transporting schoolchildren from various parts of the UK on school trips abroad were stranded in Dover for an extended period of time. Passengers told the BBC about their ordeals, with some describing the situation as “carnage.
The port’s management apologised for the lengthy delays and stated that the bottlenecks were being cleared. Ferry operators added overnight sailings to try to clear the traffic backlog, and the port’s communications team stated that ferries were “basically just running back and forth to clear as much as they can.” Officials in northern France said there were “no difficulties that we are aware of,” but that many coaches had arrived at the same time.
According to a UK government spokesperson, the government is still in close contact with ferry operators and authorities.
Sir Keir Starmer, Labour leader, said the government needed to “get a grip” on the situation at Dover.
Despite the disruption, some passengers stranded at a Folkestone service station appeared to be in good spirits and were seen dancing to pass the time.
