Holidaymakers hit with 2-hour Dover ferry waits amid strong winds, as 2.6m hit the roads for Good Friday getaway
29 March 2024, 10:57 | Updated: 29 March 2024, 11:00
Holidaymakers trying to catch ferries from Dover are being hit with delays of up to two hours amid strong winds brought by Storm Nelson.
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The Port of Dover said on Friday morning that delays were as long as 90 minutes after Thursday night's stormy weather, but that border controls in France were "flowing well".
Passengers are also being warned processing might take longer than usual because French authorities are conducting tighter security checks after the attack in Moscow last week.
Photos from Dover showed long tailbacks as drivers queued to board ferries to the continent for Easter getaways.
"Blustery scattered showers" on Friday are expected to turn "heavy and thundery at times, mainly in the south and west", according to the Met Office.
P&O Ferries said on Friday morning that "there are currently queues in the Port of Dover."
"Please don't worry if you miss your sailing, we'll get you on the next available ship once you're through check-in," the company added.
Ferry company DFDS said that all Dover-France services "are currently operating with delays due to the earlier strong winds in the Channel.
"Please check-in as normal, we will transfer all passengers onto the first available sailing on arrival. Apologies for any inconvenience caused."
It comes as around 2.6 million drivers hit the roads for Good Friday getaways, with journeys to take twice as long as usual, as the bank holiday coincides with the start of a two-week holiday for schools.
The first drivers to depart on their Easter getaways were hit by travel chaos on Thursday after Storm Nelson arrived.
Read more: Hundreds of Border Force officers at Heathrow Airport to stage four-day strike
Drivers were advised to set off as early as possible or wait until later in the day to make their Good Friday journeys, as peak times are expected to hit between 11am and 3pm.
The RAC and transport analysis company Inrix commissioned a survey which suggested 2.6 million leisure journeys by car will be made on the bank holiday.
One of the busiest roads will be the western section of the M25 between the M23 for Gatwick Airport and the M1 for Hertfordshire, where journey times will double from two to four hours on average.
Network Rail urged train passengers to check their journey details before they travel because some major routes will be closed due to engineering work.
The West Coast Main Line between London Euston and Milton Keynes will be shut for four days from Good Friday.
More than 14 million journeys are expected to take place over the course of the four-day weekend.
Deputy chief meteorologist Dan Harris said of the upcoming weather: "The weather is expected to gradually improve following the widely unsettled spell of the past few days, with a fairly typical mix of spring-like weather across the UK.
"There will be some sunshine, and it will feel increasingly warm for most as the winds become lighter.
"However, the west and especially south west is likely to see passing showers too, which could be quite heavy and frequent at times.
"Eastern coastal districts are also likely to feel increasingly cold as an onshore breeze develops, threatening persistent low cloud in some areas too."
