The dust cloud from the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland has resulted in ‘travel chaos’ at Dover. With all flights grounded, Dover port and rail services have seen a huge increase in passenger numbers.
Extra staff have been drafted in at Dover Priory station to cope with the increased demand.
A member of staff said; ‘It was chaos in the morning. Normally I’m on the trains but have been posted here to help. The ticket office was snowed under. We’ve had people from all over Europe travelling through. Things aren’t so bad now.’
Taxis were doing a brisk trade carrying passengers to the ferry port, with a steady stream opting to walk to the docks.
The P&O website has been replaced with a single page due to heavy internet traffic as people look for alternatives to cancelled flights. P&O’s helpline is 08716 645 645 (Calls cost 10 pence per minute from a BT landline. Calls from other networks and mobiles may cost more)
A message warns travellers; ‘Dover-Calais - If you are planning on travelling as a foot passenger in the next 24 hours we have no space available. For bookings after this period, please call the contact centre for latest availability.
The Eurostar site also warns; ‘We would ask that you only come to our stations if you hold a confirmed reservation for travel'.
Latest reports from the BBC are that some air traffic restrictions may be lifted tomorrow morning, though it may take several days for the backlog of travellers to be cleared.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment