For the Eurotunnel, 2021 will be the year of all crises. Affiliate of Getlink Group Cross-channel traffic for trucks and passenger vehicles; Freight traffic last year fell 6% on Friday. Franco-British society has faced many dizziness. It all started with a health crisis that had disrupted transportation for two years. Therefore, compared to 2019 – before the health crisis and Brexit – the decline in traffic is 14%.

Therefore, the exit of Great Britain from the European Union, which is initiating new customs procedures, should be added to this, the consequences of which are already visible in freight operations. To avoid the red tape, in the face of the uncertainty that is still being negotiated, some companies are opting for the waterway and its direct connection with Ireland.

In detail, these are as follows In 2020, 1.452 million to 1.362 million trucks passed through the tunnel. The expansion of the Omiciron variant at the end of the year, which prompted France to re-impose travel restrictions on the British, would slow recovery.

-63% compared to pre-crisis period

The jump is even more impressive for passenger vehicles (passing 960,205 vehicles), including two-wheelers, camper vans and coaches – a place very vulnerable to contaminants, quarantine procedures and other travel restrictions. Even so, the traffic crash was 63% compared to 2019 (-32% compared to 2020).

Another devastating factor is that the opening of the railways to competition in France already brings new competition. In October, Renfe, Spain’s national rail company, announced that it wanted to launch high-speed trains between Paris and London using the still available channel tunnel traffic slots.

Currently, about 9 million passengers use the Paris-London line each year, including seven million via the Eurostar train, which connects the two capitals in just 2 hours.

Getlink will release this year’s detailed traffic figures and revenue on January 20th. In the third quarter of 2021, he had already reported a 13% drop in sales.

(With AFP)

With Brexit, Cherberg will triple its freight traffic to Ireland by 2021.