FAMILIES getting away for Christmas have been hit with massive delays as a massive IT glitch continues to cause chaos.
The technical issue at the French border control resulted in motorists being trapped in their cars for hours and missing their ferries.
One frustrated driver wrote on X: “There is no customer services at Dover. We were in the queue for two and a half hours and no one in the queue knows anything.”
Another added: “Just a horrible experience at Port of Dover. How can the traffic flow be this bad? Never want to travel this way again.”
A third fumed: “Horrible experience at Port of Dover this morning. Absolute chaos. Traffic at a standstill for an hour.
“Worst start to holiday imaginable. Just missed our boat. Still stuck. Kids in car. Don’t travel via Dover Port if you can avoid it.”
Doug Bannister, Chief Executive at the Port of Dover said: “Prior to our peak traffic arrival this morning, the Border started to experience IT issues.
“Unfortunately, there are still some ongoing issues, which is causing increased wait times whilst traffic is being processed.
“We are working with our partner agencies whilst they try to resolve these issues.
“We ask that passengers do not arrive more than two hours before their sailing and for their patience and understanding.
“We also ask that all port-bound traffic remains on the main roads to the port, the A20 and A2, and keep the local roads clear so that the Dover Community can still travel to festive events and finish their Christmas shopping in the town.
“If customers do miss their scheduled sailing due to the wait times, their ferry operator will place them on the next available crossing.”
Over on X, The Port of Dover released a statement, informing customers that the issue had been resolved, but that there would be a knock-on effect for the rest of the day.
It’s been predicted that a whopping 25 million cars are expected to take to the roads today as the country closes down for Christmas.
The travel chaos first began on Friday as millions flocked home for Christmas.
As well as gridlock at Dover, British motorways were packed as 460,000 journeys were made today – with more expected over the weekend.
Airports and railways are expected to be carnage this weekend and the AA anticipated 24.4 million cars on UK roads.
Locations at particular risk included the M25 near Heathrow and Bluewater in Kent as shoppers make a last minute dash for presents.
Traffic expert Andy Marchant from TomTom said frantic Friday will be a precursor for super Saturday as festive travellers hit the road again.
He added: “Our advice is to plan ahead, allow extra time for your journey and keep an eye on real-time traffic updates to avoid the worst of the festive gridlock.”
To make travel even more tricky, the Met Office is warning of heavy rain throughout the weekend.
Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said: “There are still signs that the weather is going to change fairly significantly by Christmas Day, which of course is now just a week away.
“But up until then, unfortunately, it’s more of the same – more of the same Atlantic-driven weather fronts coming in, weather fronts coming in from the west.”
