Delays at Folkestone and Port of Dover to cross English Channel

There are long delays for passengers travelling from Kent to France after a power outage in the Channel Tunnel.

Eurotunnel suspended its LeShuttle passenger service through the tunnel at Folkestone, but the service later resumed with six-hour delays, reduced to five-hour delays by 21:00 GMT.

Those travelling by ferry through the Port of Dover had to wait an extra 90 minutes for much of the day because of the knock-on effect.

In a statement, LeShuttle said services were resuming, but remained “severely disrupted”.

The company added: “We are working hard to resolve this.”

Lee Dennis, from Hastings, was delayed for six hours with his family waiting for LeShuttle on their trip to Brugge.

“Stuff happens. But there were no updates,” he told BBC Radio Sussex.

“We just sat there and waited. It was very inconvenient.”

Another traveller, Adam Barras, said he spent his day “sitting here trying to pass the time” after his family’s car was stuck in the Channel Tunnel for almost four hours.

He said: “We had no water, no food. I heard other passengers say they had run out of toilet roll in the toilets.”

Matthew Webber, from Suffolk, said he had been stuck for hours at Folkestone and was unclear whether he and his group would be able to continue their journey.

He told the BBC: “Lots of queues and everyone is waiting to get on the tunnel. The conditions are very busy, and people are leaving to get a ferry.”

In an update on Tuesday afternoon, Getlink, which operates the Channel Tunnel, said traffic was expected to resume gradually for LeShuttle passengers from about 14:00 GMT.

“An incident related to the power supply to trains occurred last night in part of the Channel Tunnel, affecting train and shuttle traffic,” a spokesperson said.

“A technical intervention is required, which is currently under way.”

A broken down LeShuttle train has also been moved out of the Channel Tunnel, a spokesperson said.

Cars hoping to cross the Eurotunnel caused traffic jams on the approach to the Folkestone terminal.

After previously warning of 45-minute delays on the M20 near the LeShuttle terminal in Folkestone, National Highways said traffic has now eased in the area.

The congestion was focused around the eastbound exit slip road to the Channel Tunnel vehicle terminal.

The Port of Dover said it had “capacity for extra passengers” but warned of delays due to the Channel Tunnel travel chaos.

Those travelling to the UK’s busiest ferry port must use the A20 and A2 to avoid congestion in the town, it added.

Doug Bannister, the port’s chief executive, said “it is clearly is really busy down there” and “we’re probably about three quarters full”.

He added: “Everything is running really smoothly.”

Eurostar passengers travelling from the UK have been told to postpone their travel plans and rebook for a later date.

The Kent and Medway Resilience Forum (KMRF) said Operation Brock, a queuing system on the M20 during busy periods, would not be introduced on Tuesday as “queues are diminishing”.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Eurotunnel is working with operators to resume some services while repairs to overhead electrical cables in the Channel Tunnel are ongoing, however, significant disruption is likely for the remainder of the day.

“We are working with Eurotunnel, Eurostar and the KMRF to minimise disruption for passengers.

“Passengers are encouraged to check with their operator for updates and guidance.”