Thursday December 24th 2020
Huge traffic jam in Dover
Trucks are driving again, but slowly
The border closure between France and Great Britain has been relaxed, but the backlog of trucks in Dover is only slowly dissolving. It should be days before the drivers are allowed to continue. Some lose patience – there is scuffle.
After a standstill for days, the trucks are rolling again in south-east England, but progress is slow. Goods can now be transferred to France again from the important British port of Dover and through the Eurotunnel. However, thousands of vehicles are still waiting in south-east England, including an estimated hundreds from Germany. Kent County officials said they were convinced that more trucks could be on their way soon. A negative corona test is required for entry into the EU.
British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps asked the drivers to be patient. He warned that they had to follow the instructions "so that traffic gets rolling". "It will take days rather than weeks, but it will take patience," Shapps told the BBC. Shapps tweeted that there were further serious delays despite the start of the tests. He called on truckers to keep avoiding Kent. "Arriving in the area will slow your journey down."
After a new, possibly even more contagious variant of the coronavirus spread across the UK, France closed its borders. Many trucks quickly jammed in the region around Dover. After days of negotiations, an agreement was reached. But first the British authorities had to set up test stations. The military also helped with around 170 emergency services.
EU Transport Commissioner Adina Valean blamed France for the truck chaos. "I condemn France going against our recommendations and getting us back to the situation we were in in March when the supply chains were broken," Valean tweeted on the night. On the other hand, she praised the British side. The authorities would test 300 drivers an hour. "I am pleased that trucks are slowly crossing the English Channel at this moment." The Commissioner called on EU member states to relax rest periods and lift holiday driving bans so that drivers can return to their families in time for Christmas.
Clashes with police
Because there was no progress for a long time despite the announcement that the borders were reopened, some drivers lost patience. There were clashes with police in Dover and at least one man was arrested. The situation was still tense, it said on Wednesday evening from the local government. A police car is said to have been damaged at the disused Manston Airport a good 30 kilometers north of Dover, where more than 3,700 vehicles were parked.
"We only have two mobile food stations for maybe 2000 drivers," the PA news agency quoted a Polish trucker as saying. "We wait two hours in the rain for the hamburger." Everyone is upset and hungry.
Trade associations warn that the long delays could lead to supply gaps, for example for fruit and vegetables, which Great Britain imports in large part from the EU. "Until the backlog is cleared and the supply chains have normalized, we expect problems with the availability of some fresh goods," said Andre Opie, who is responsible for food at the BRC trade association. To help out with deliveries, Lufthansa flew 80 tons of fruit and vegetables to England on a cargo plane. The tourism group TUI also helped out and launched several special flights with goods and corona test material from Amsterdam and Brussels to London.
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