Coach passengers bear brunt of 'chaotic' pre-Easter weekend at Dover
Will PayneTravellers faced delays of up to 17 hours at the border in Dover at the weekend due to slow processing and an unexpected number of coaches causing "traffic chaos" at the border.
Disruption was first reported on Friday (31 March) after operators P&O Ferries and DFDS blamed bad weather for the delays.
A "critical incident" was declared with coach operators being particularly hard hit, the BBC reported, with some companies turning around and returning home due to the delays.
The situation was "all clear" from 12.30am on Monday (3 April), a port spokesperson confirmed, after a buffer zone within the port had been emptied of coaches.
The port said: "The Port of Dover continued working round the clock with the ferry operators and border agencies to get coach passengers on their way and the backlog is now cleared.
"We continue to offer our sincere apologies to all those affected by the prolonged delays that have occurred over this weekend."
It confirmed a full review of its operations with the ferry operators would take place this week (3 April) to ensure improvements are made ahead of the Easter weekend.
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