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TRAVEL NEWS

UK travellers to France face long delays for third day

Channel ferry operators laid on extra sailings overnight to clear a backlog that has seen passengers travelling from the UK to France delayed for up to 16 hours.

UK travellers to France face long delays for third day
Photo: Ben Stansall/AFP

However, British Home Secretary Suella Braverman on Sunday rejected the idea the delays at the start of the Easter getaway were “an adverse effect of Brexit” which ended free movement from Britain to European Union member states.

Despite the additional crossings, Dover Port on England’s southern coast said coach passengers could still face waits of up to eight hours before they were able to board a ferry.

“The additional sailings have assisted in clearing some of the traffic, although currently both (ferry operators) DFDS and P&O have two full lanes of coaches in the port before French border controls, with a processing time of about 4.5 hours,” a port spokesman said.

“Once coaches are processed in an operator’s lane, more are being sent to the port. Currently, the estimated total time is six to eight hours,” he added.

P&O Ferries apologised to customers on Sunday, saying some will face waits of four to five hours.

Braverman told Sky News some delays were to be expected at peak holiday times. “I think we have got a particular combination of factors that have occurred at this point in time.

“This will ease… but it is a busy time of year,” she said.

Last summer, the UK government blamed France for failing to adequately staff their border posts at the port of Dover after two days of long delays for all travellers, allegations that Paris denied.

French lawmakers said checks now took longer as Britain has “third-country” status because it was no longer in the EU, and urged that facilities be improved at Dover.

The port said earlier the delays, which began on Friday, had affected coach passengers, with car and freight traffic being processed steadily without undue problems.

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PARIS 2024 OLYMPICS

How Paris’s Olympic carpool lanes will work 

Throughout the Olympic and Paralympic Games periods, some 185km of lanes on roads around Paris will be reserved for event-related traffic – here’s what you need to know.

How Paris’s Olympic carpool lanes will work 

Between July 15th and September 11th, ‘Olympic lanes’ will be in use along certain stretches of key roads in and around Paris.

These lanes will be reserved for use by accredited vehicles to transport athletes, accredited journalists and official delegations, as well as emergency and security vehicles, cabs, ambulances and public transport.

READ ALSO Apps, reservations and flying taxis: What to know before visiting Paris this summer

The lanes will be activated on July 15, on the following roads:

  • A1 between Roissy Charles de Gaulle and Porte de la Chapelle, until September 11th;
  • A4 between Collégien and Porte de Bercy until August 13th, then from August 30th to September 8th;
  • A12 between Rocquencourt and Montigny le Bretonneux until August 13th, and again from August 27th to September 8th;
  • A13 between Porte Maillot and Rocquencourt until August 13th, then from August 27th to September 8th;
  • Boulevard périphérique, from Porte de Vanves to Porte de Bercy, via the north until August 13th, then from August 22th to September 11th;
  • Boulevard Circulaire (La Défense) until August 13th, then from August 22nd to September 11th;
  • Lanes on certain routes in Paris.

None of these roads will be closed – lanes along these routes that are not reserved for Olympic or Paralympic Games traffic are open to road users as usual.

The lanes in question will be signposted – signs, clearly marked with the words “Paris 2024”, will be in place from July 1st, and will be removed by the end of the day on September 15h. 

READ ALSO How to use Paris public transport during the Olympics

Who can use dedicated Olympic lanes?

Only vehicles and road users that have been properly accredited by the Organising Committee of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games can travel along these lanes during the periods indicated above. 

They include:

  • vehicles of accredited persons;
  • cabs;
  • public transport vehicles;
  • vehicles designed to facilitate the transport of people with reduced mobility;
  • and emergency and security vehicles.

READ ALSO Who needs a QR code to get around Paris during the Olympics

All other vehicles are prohibited from using these lanes throughout the Olympic Games period. Any vehicle circulating on an Olympic lane without having received prior authorisation is liable to a fine of €135 and possible further prosecution.

Road users without Olympic accreditation are advised to be aware of possible travel issues, as more vehicles are filtered into the other lanes. Therefore it would be wise to allow a little extra time for your journey if you are using one of the listed roads during the Games period.

An interactive map, showing routes with Olympic lanes is available here

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