EUROSTAR DOUBLES STAFF AMID FEARS OF EU BORDER CHAOS
Eurostar and the Port of Dover have put on extra staff to try to cope with the EU’s new entry/exit systems (EES), which starts operating on Sunday.
The EES rules for British travellers going to France are being phased in over the next six months, but there are fears they will lead to chaos at St Pancras International in London, the Eurotunnel terminal in Folkestone and at the Port of Dover.
Britons will need to use electronic kiosks to scan their passports, give biometric information, including fingerprints, and answer a series of questions about accommodation, return travel, funds and insurance.
Eurostar has warned customers to make sure they give truthful answers because “your answers are binding, and you may be asked to provide proof”. Passengers who do not answer “yes” to all questions will be directed to a border officer for extra checks.
The train operator has doubled the number of staff on duty at St Pancras tomorrow to help people work out how to use kiosks, with “specially-trained staff available at all times”.
It will let passengers board trains up to half an hour before they are due to depart to help ease crowding. There are 49 electronic EES kiosks around the station, rather than the 24 originally planned.
Meanwhile, the Port of Dover has invested £40 million, and Getlink, the company behind Eurotunnel, has spent £70 million to prepare for the new system.
The Government has signed a contract with Lydden Hill Race Circuit and a second Kent location to hold overflow traffic in the event that EES causes long queues.
Ports have the right to suspend the border checks if they cause significant backlogs, but it is unclear whether France would permit the UK to do so in the event of travel chaos. The Port of Dover also has a mechanism (nicknamed the “Cry Wolf” button) where EES checks can be paused to get the passenger flow back to normal.
Despite the preparations, there are concerns that most travellers will be caught out by the EES system. Research by the Association of British Travel Agents (Abta), published last month, found that just 51pc of people were aware of the EES. This rises to 61pc among people who had been on holiday in the past year.
Some travel experts have warned people travelling via Dover or St Pancras to give themselves up to four hours to ensure they make their trip.
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Julia Lo-Bue Said, chief executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “People need to understand that they may be delayed, and also, just make sure they’re priming those [waiting] at the other end that there is a potential delay.”
The EES forms part of a border control scheme intended to track movement across the EU and crack down on people overstaying their visas. It was due to be introduced in November 2024, but was pushed backafter port bosses warned they were not ready.
Travellers going through the Port of Dover or the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras effectively enter France on British soil, with French officials conducting border checks here.
2025-10-11T18:45:43Z