Holidaymakers face wait on derelict Kent racecourse during six-hour EES queues

An abandoned racecourse has been earmarked by the Government as an emergency site for holidaymakers stuck in queues from the EU’s Entry-Exit System (EES) checks while heading to Dover and Eurotunnel this summer. Folkestone Racecourse, which once attracted jockey legends like Frankie Dettori and Tony McCoy as well as Princess Anne, has been identified by the Department for Transport (DfT) as a holding area for tourist traffic going through Kent. The derelict course, which closed in 2012, is just off junction 11 on the M20 in Westenhanger, where there are plans to build up to 10,000 homes for a new garden town. Shorts A second contingency traffic layover site for 1,200 vehicles at Lydden Hill motor racing circuit, off the A2 about six miles from Dover, is already in place ahead of what is expected to be this year’s busiest weekend at the port as schools break for summer. Officials have stressed that both sites – which are voluntary for travellers – would only be used as a last resort amid concern that EES biometric checks for British and non-EU nationals, will spark travel chaos at European borders in the coming months. Around 10,500 outbound vehicles are expected on both Saturday and Sunday at Dover, where jams can lead to knock-on congestion at Eurotunnel near Folkestone. Modelling carried out by Port of Dover predicted EES logjams caused by the extra processing time for EU’s EES fingerprint and facial scans could lead to 12-hour queues in a worst case scenario. More recent analysis indicated that traffic time could be six to eight hours, with a critical incident called at the port in May when queues reached four and a half hours on a bank holiday Saturday. Jim Martin, the Green Party leader of Folkestone & Hythe District Council, said the council was approached by DfT and the multi-agency Kent and Medway Resilience Forum (KMRF) about using the former racecourse as part of traffic contingency planning. “They stressed it was an emergency situation depending on what happens with EES and with particular reference to the Channel Tunnel,” he told The i Paper. “The issue is that if it all goes pear shaped in the Channel Tunnel approach, they fill up fairly quickly. “They’ve got a lot of room, but there is a tidal wave of cars that come down the motorway.” Travellers would be able to use portaloo toilets, walk dogs and get refreshments after parking their vehicles on the course about a mile from the former grandstand, he said. Holidaymakers would then rejoin the traffic queueing on the motorway when they have used the facilities. “If it goes wrong on the French passport control that’s when the nightmare scenario could be triggered,” said Cllr Martin. “The Department for Transport said they were – I don’t want to over-dramatise it as a national emergency – completely stuck unless we cooperated.” The temporary facility could be laid out in 24 hours, he said, but as of Tuesday nothing had been put in place. Work is underway to ready the site, a KMRF spokesperson said. Vehicles would park on temporary tracks laid on the grass, but not enough had been sourced by DfT, Martin said he was told at a meeting about 10 days ago. “This was just in the team discussions. They’ve got the contractor lined up, they’ve got 800 mats, but they’re still looking for another 200,” he added. However, another source involved in planning denied a lack of mats for vehicles was an issue. After Brexit, Britons are classed as “third-country nationals” who must provide fingerprints and facial biometrics for EES when crossing Schengen area countries. But currently, Dover and Eurotunnel car passengers are not having their biometrics taken due to problems with French border technology at kiosks. They are only being registered by French border police who open an EES file for them, but the critical incident at Dover during May’s half-term – which led to EES registrations being suspended – showed how fragile the system can be. Port of Dover said 100,000 customers passed through last weekend at the start of the summer getaway, and that French border police – Police Aux Frontières (PAF) – “performed very well”. A port spokesperson said PAF had maximised resources, including new border posts added recently following widespread concerns after May’s half term. Antony Hook, a Liberal Democrat councillor at Kent County Council, said: “Brexit, of which EES is one manifestation, is costing us more and more. “The authorities, local and national, need to be transparent about how much this is all costing us.” There are plans to turn the race course and surrounding area into Otterpool Park garden town, with Folkestone and Hythe District Council buying the 200-acre racecourse for £25 million in 2020. Plans for the first 8,500 homes were approved in 2023, but building work is not expected until 2028. In 1986, Princess Anne came third on the horse Glowing Promise in the Leeds Amateur Riders’ Stakes at Folkestone Racecourse. During the Second World War, it was also used as a decoy airfield with dummy aircraft placed to look like RAF planes. A DfT spokesperson said: “Passenger welfare comes first, that’s why we’re supporting KMRF by securing an additional site to provide welfare for passengers at Folkestone Racecourse, alongside Lydden Hill Race Track, so people can access food, water and toilet facilities in the event of disruption. “These sites help take traffic off Kent’s roads in times of significant disruption, keeping journeys moving and reducing the impact on local residents and travellers.”