Every traffic jam at the Gotthard is peanuts: The Sievert family from Thurgau was stuck in a traffic jam for 22 hours in front of the Eurotunnel in Folkestone (GB). The journey home from England, where the family had spent their holiday with the caravan, took 33 hours – three times longer than they had planned.
On Sunday at 8 p.m., Alexandra (40) Sievert, her husband (41) and their daughter (16) arrived at home in Weinfelden in Thurgau. «After we left the Eurotunnel in Calais, France, everything went well. We drove through, except for a lunch break, »says Alexandra Sievert.
At home, dead tired, they threw themselves into bed. Her husband – project manager in the locksmith industry – reported back to work a day later and slept until noon on Monday. “He felt it the most, he drove the whole distance,” says Alexandra Sievert.
She herself got up at 6:30 a.m. on Monday to clear out and clean the caravan. “After all, as a teaching assistant, I still have two weeks of vacation.”
Miles of traffic jams in front of the tunnel
These days, cars are jammed up for miles in front of the Eurotunnel. The Sieverts had planned to load their car and trailer onto the train at 9.30am on Saturday.
But nothing came of it: On Saturday evening, the family was still in the huge column. They had only covered 400 meters in 12.5 hours. And that in a blazing heat of 30 degrees.
Brexit makes it harder
Since Brexit on January 21, 2020, entering continental Europe from the island has become more difficult. The British blame the French for the chaos. “Some passport counters of the French simply remained empty,” says Doug Bannister, chief of the port of Dover, to the “Daily Mail”. Only six out of twelve counters were occupied on Friday morning.
The scenes in Dover have made waves at the highest political level. Foreign Minister Liz Truss (46), who wants to become the next Prime Minister of Great Britain, describes the current situation as “terrible”, but also as “completely avoidable”: “We need measures from France to increase capacities at the border, further disruptions for limit British tourists and ensure that this terrible situation is avoided in the future. We will work with the French authorities to find a solution.”
Since Brexit on January 21, 2020, entering continental Europe from the island has become more difficult. The British blame the French for the chaos. “Some passport counters of the French simply remained empty,” says Doug Bannister, chief of the port of Dover, to the “Daily Mail”. Only six out of twelve counters were occupied on Friday morning.
The scenes in Dover have made waves at the highest political level. Foreign Minister Liz Truss (46), who wants to become the next Prime Minister of Great Britain, describes the current situation as “terrible”, but also as “completely avoidable”: “We need measures from France to increase capacities at the border, further disruptions for limit British tourists and ensure that this terrible situation is avoided in the future. We will work with the French authorities to find a solution.”
Alexandra Sievert is amazed at how calmly people took the queue in front of the 50-kilometer tunnel – unlike what is often the case in Switzerland. “There was no rushing, no honking, no moaning,” says Alexandra Sievert. People stood on the street and walked to the shop.
Her husband retreated to the caravan for a few minutes to sleep. “I stayed in the car and woke him up when it was a few meters further,” says Alexandra Sievert, who doesn’t want to drive the caravan herself.
Because they had filled the fridge beforehand, they might eat all the time. “We ate a lot of cold cuts and yoghurt,” she says.
It was not until Sunday, 6.30 a.m., that they were finally able to start the 35-minute journey under the English Channel – following 22 hours in traffic jams.
Now to Lake Garda
As soon as they got home, the people of Thurgau are already planning their holidays once more. “In autumn we’ll probably go to Lake Garda,” says Alexandra Sievert. Of course with the caravan and via Brenner. “We try to avoid traffic jams as much as possible. But if we get into one, we can’t change anything.”
In general, the Sieverts take the horror traffic jam calmly. «It was an experience. We just made a fool of it and weren’t informed enough.”
