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Final ‘red’ travel weekend of France’s summer holidays

France’s roads watchdog Bison Futé has issued a nationwide red travel alert - its last of the summer holidays.

Published: 25 August 2023 14:11 CEST
Motorists drive on the A10 motorway between Saint-Andre-de-Cubzac and Bordeaux, southwestestern France
It's another busy weekend on France's roads. (Photo by ROMAIN PERROCHEAU / AFP)

La rentrée is fast approaching and summer holiday travellers are heading back home, prompting Bison Futé to issue one last nationwide summer holiday red travel warning – indicating very difficult driving conditions on major routes – between Friday, August 25th and Monday, August 28th.

It has also issued lower-level yellow alerts – difficult driving conditions – on all four days, mostly for those heading back towards major cities from holiday destinations in France.

Meanwhile, it has maintained its forecast yellow travel warnings for Friday, September 1st, and Saturday, September 2nd as the holiday stragglers head home in time for the start of the new school year on September 4th.

The next difficult travel days after that are forecast at the start, middle and end of the two-week Toussaint holidays at the end of October, beginning of November.

For travel on Friday, August 25th, Bison Futé has has put southeast France on a red travel advisory while the rest of the country is on yellow, and advised motorists heading back to major cities from holiday resorts to avoid:

  • travel in the Île-de-France region after 2pm;
  • the A10 between Bordeaux and Orléans until 8pm;
  • the A63 between Spain and Bayonne until 10pm;
  • the A7 between Marseille and Lyon until 12midnight;
  • the A8 between Nice and Aix-en-Provence until 4pm;
  • the A9 freeway Spain and Orange until 9pm;

Access to France via the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205) will be busy through to 11pm.

Meanwhile, with the entire country on yellow alert in the direction of holiday resorts, anyone planning a late, late summer getaway on Saturday, August 26th should:

  • leave or cross the Île-de-France region and major cities before 10am;
  • avoid the N165 between Nantes and Quimper between 11am and 1pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Lyon and Marseille between 9am and 5pm;
  • avoid the A61 between Toulouse and Narbonne between 11am and 2pm;
  • Be aware that the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205) from France into Italy will be busy between 10am and 6pm.

Those heading back home from their summer break on Saturday face the most difficult driving conditions, with all major routes expected to be very busy. They are advised to:

  • reach or cross the Île-de-France region before 2pm;
  • avoid the N165 between Quimper and Nantes between 10am and 12pm;
  • avoid the A10 between Bordeaux and Orléans between 10am and 7pm;
  • avoid the A63 between Spain and Bayonne between 11am and 10pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Marseille and Lyon between 10am and 12midnight;
  • avoid the A8 between Nice and Aix-en-Provence between 11am and 1pm;
  • avoid the A9 between Narbonne and Montpellier between 9am and 4pm;
  • be aware that access to France via the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205) will be busy from 10am to 10pm.

Warnings are in place for those heading back home on Sunday, August 27th, though on a national level travel conditions are set to be merely “difficult”, rather than “very difficult”:

  • reach or cross the Île-de-France region before 12noon;
  • avoid the A10 between Bordeaux and Orléans between 9am and 11pm;
  • avoid the A63 between Spain and Bayonne between 12noon and 8pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Marseille and Lyon between 9am and 12midnight;
  • avoid the A8 between Nice and Aix-en-Provence between 10am and 12noon;
  • avoid the A9 between Narbonne and Montpellier between 1pm and 7pm;
  • avoid the A71 between Clermont-Ferrand and Orléans between 10am and 8pm;
  • avoid the A61 between Narbonne and Toulouse between 12noon and 6pm;
  • be aware that access to France via the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205) will be busy from 10am to 10pm.

And, for Monday, August 28th, the following advice is offered to motorists returning to major cities in France – with a red “very difficult” travel warning in place for Île-de-France:

  • reach or cross the Île-de-France region before 2pm;
  • avoid the A10 between Tour and Orléans between 10am and 8pm;
  • avoid the A63 between Spain and Bayonne between 8am and 4pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Marseille and Lyon between 11am and 9pm.
  • avoid the A8 between Nice and Aix-en-Provence between 11am and 1pm;
  • be aware that access to France via the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205) will be busy between 3pm and 8pm.

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a soft launch of the new EU border system – the entry/exit (EES) system – on the assumption that it will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

READ ALSO: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

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