World News for Students of English

03-06-2024 07:00

Travel businesses in Europe are preparing for the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES), set to launch in the autumn.

This system requires non-EU nationals, including UK citizens, to register their fingerprints and a photograph before entering the EU. This change is expected to cause delays at UK border points like Dover, the Eurostar station in London, and the Eurotunnel entry point in Folkestone. Currently, passport checks take about 45 seconds to 1.5 minutes per car, but the new system will add a few minutes per passenger. To manage this, Dover is investing 10 million pounds to improve the process and create more space. Eurotunnel is spending 70 million pounds on new lanes and equipment. Eurostar is setting up 49 new EES kiosks and expanding its London terminal.

Despite these efforts, businesses worry about possible delays and bottlenecks. The EU might allow reduced checks for the first six months if queues get too long.

Difficult words: kiosk (a small building where you can buy tickets or get information), bottleneck (a place where there is often a lot of traffic, causing it to slow down or stop).

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