The tournament is taking place from Friday 10 June until Sunday 10 July and it is expected that some supporters will choose to drive to France using the Dover to Calais route. Ten years ago when the World Cup was in Germany over 350,000 England fans travelled – with 36,000 using the Port of Dover and 20,000 using the Channel Tunnel – and the expectations are that this year with Wales, Northern Ireland and England all in the competition that it is likely that at least as many if not more fans will be heading abroad.
Highways England Emergency Planning Manager, Ollie Brown said:
Safety is Highways England’s top priority and we want to help fans travelling to support their national teams to make their journeys safely and avoid being stuck in traffic. We have been working with our partners to manage traffic heading to Euro 2016 safely. Our traffic officers will be working 24/7, both on road and in our control rooms, to keep the region’s motorways and major A roads flowing and to keep drivers updated. Traffic could be higher than normal and we advise drivers to plan their journeys and to allow extra time.
Highways England wants all fans to have an enjoyable and above all safe journey to the continent. We are working with our partners to safely manage traffic heading to Euro 2016 and our traffic officers will be working 24/7 to keep the motorways and major A roads flowing.
Drivers are advised to:
- plan and leave plenty of time for journeys
- check travel conditions before setting out and, where it is safe to do so, during journeys
- ensure they and their cars are fit for the round trip to France – including taking regular breaks and topping up with fuel
- tourist traffic is advised to consider using the M2/A2
- freight and cruise traffic is advised to use the M20/A20
- local traffic is advised to consider other routes such as the B2011, A256 or A258, which may not be suitable for HGVs
Highways England provides live traffic information via its website, local and national radio travel bulletins, electronic road signs and mobile apps. Local Twitter services are also available at @highwaysSEast.
Providing they can do so safely, road users can also call the Highways England information line on 0300 123 5000 to keep up to date with road conditions.