Well done Eurotunnel!

[Lyza]

I have moaned about the service on the Shuttle at half term since last year. This time however the service was excellent, we were early and everyone seemed to be a lot more positive than before. Loading was effficient, the terminal was busy but coping well. Well done. I know this is how it should be all the time, it hasn't been our experience over the past eight months, but it really does make a difference when they get it right.

Long may it last

Lyza

[dave]

Wandering through the Eurotunnel web site about a month ago I found that a day trip would cost £42, cheap I thought, and booked it.   We live in Kent so it's very easy to get to the terminal. 

We travelled last Sunday.  First time to try the automatic check in.  Everything worked perfectly. Check in easy, trains on time both ways, no long queues. Had a great day in Arras.  I have travelled with Eurotunnel when things have not been thus.... but Sunday was good.

I'm still puzzled tho' that on this side of the channel my passport is checked, my car door handles and steering wheel are swabbed for explosives, a burly Customs guy has to chat to me whilst casting ten eyes (in different directions) around the car interior before I can get in lane.  On the French side a decapitated hand waves us past Customs and that is that........ c'est la vie.

Happy travelling  Dave

 

 

[Chancer]

Dave.

Did you realise that on this side, in your case Britain it is the French customs doing the checks and in France vice versa thus allowing you to drive straight off the train to the autoroute.

I am not sure if it is the same for the immigration/passport control.

[chrisb]

The security checks both sides are intermittent - but I think on balance we've had the explosive swab test more often when coming back from France than when going out.

On one occasion recently this had been augmented by a sniffer dog check which was interesting.

Passports are invariably checked (and recorded) by the UK immigration staff in France (except at extremely off peak times) but hardly ever checked when heading to France.

The auto check-in  kit certainly seems to be working much better lately - and our last few crossings have been trouble free.

[dave]

JR-- Yes I realise that they usually work on opposite sides, but this time it was definately a burly Yorkshire man doing the chatting at Folkestone and a lady from London doing  the swabbing.  I haven't used Eurotunnel for some time so am probably a bit out of touch.

Anyway, it all seemed to work very well on that day....

Regards Dave

[MargaretD]

I travel regularly with Eurotunnel, once or twice a month, and find that they are beginning to start the "loading" process earlier.  With all the door wiping, steering wheel swobbing and passport checking I was sometimes too late for the train I had been booked onto and for which I had waited the call.  Now, they seem to allow more time, and last Friday evening there were 5 trains leaving Folkestone between 4pm and 5pm (Or at least that was what we were told)!

By the way, what happens if you work in a quarry with explosives?  Surely the car would be covered with whatever they are looking for.  I also travel with P and O, when I know I have a few spare minutes to plan in an evening meal. 

M

[chrisb]

Good point Margaret.

Also - as they do a whole row of cars at a time with the one swab, presumably if it shows 'positive' then all the cars will get subjected to a complete search. Doesn't bear thinking about!

They used to do a nice routine of what appeared to be friendly chat about where you had been/were going presumably meant to trap the unwary into revealing something suspicious. Takes a lot to beat the old chestnut "are you carrying any firearms or explosives?" a. "yes - er I mean no. DOH!"

[Alane]

I've complained about Eurotunnel in the past but recent experience has been much better. We came back this evening and I was expecting the usual end of half term queues at the French terminal, but no - straight to an auto check in machine and confirmed on our booked crossing, a swift passage through the security checks and passport contral and loaded almost immediately and away on time.

Too good to be true of course, at Folkestone a car in the carriage in front of us wouldn't start and it took 15 minutes to shift it off the train so the rest of us could disembark but that I can put down to misfortune.

Let's hope they can keep it up through the busy summer period.

 

[AnOther]

[quote user="chrisb"]"are you carrying any firearms or explosives?" a. "yes - er I mean no. DOH!"[/quote]Off at a bit of a tangent but I once had a spotty yoof at Harwich in all sincerity and with clipboard in hand ask me "are you carrying any weapons of mass destruction today" (I particularly like the "today" bit.

As a matter of fact on that occasion I was heading ultimately for Germany and as I had introduced my friends children there to Baked Beans was carrying 2 cases of them so it crossed my mind to answer in the affirmative but I though better of it...........[;-)]