The Port of Dover is warning that hauliers could face significant disruption this summer as congestion caused by the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) threatens to bring traffic through Kent to a standstill.
In a letter to Business and Trade Committee chair Liam Byrne MP, Dover Port chief executive Doug Bannister said freight operators risk becoming trapped behind tourist traffic despite most HGV drivers being exempt from the new biometric border checks, raising the spectre of another summer of gridlock on roads leading to the Port.
The warning follows a Critical Incident during the May half-term getaway, when just a few hours of EES processing resulted in queues of up to four-and-a-half hours and widespread gridlock around Dover.
With summer holiday traffic expected to be considerably heavier, the port says the situation could deteriorate further unless the UK secures operational easements from France and the EU.
The Port argues that delays to freight traffic would have consequences well beyond Kent. Dover handles around one-third of UK trade in goods with the EU, much of it consisting of time-critical cargoes including medicines, automotive components and fresh food.
Alternative ferry routes would only become commercially viable after delays of more than 16 hours or around 20 missed sailings, while the necessary spare capacity simply does not exist elsewhere.
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