The scandal-stricken shipping company has canceled all operations since March, as its decision to lay off 800 staff and replace them with agency workers sparked national outrage.
A post on the P&O Updates Twitter account read: “All P&O Ferries passenger services are suspended this weekend.
“For April 8/9/10 trips, please book again directly with another carrier before arriving at the port.” The pilot said yesterday that he was ready to resume services this weekend, but in a turn today announced that they have already been canceled, the Mirror reports. Read more related articles Read more related articles The announcement will undoubtedly worsen the involvement in the M20 in which Operation Brock has been instigated, reports Kent Online. Today, the eighth day of a trip to Kent, there is a huge queue waiting to enter Dover Harbor. Rival DFDS has warned of delays of up to two hours in its services from Dover to Calais and is not accepting P&O customers. Trucks lined up at Operation Brock at the M20 on Thursday. (Image: PA) Chris Parker, director of the DFDS, said he was running the ferry “as fast as we could.” The ferry company has booked more than 40,000 passengers for its Dover flights this weekend, a 50% increase over the weekend. 30,000,000 are expected to take to the streets in anticipation of the Easter holidays. About 13.6 million are expected on Good Friday alone. Read more related articles Read more related articles With travel chaos continuing this weekend as thousands of holidaymakers and truckers face further delays to Dover Harbor, fears are mounting that the local council is going to declare a “major incident”. In an open letter, Dover Regional Council Chairman Trevor Bartlett said the city “will not tolerate another weekend stalemate.” Mr Bartlett added: “We will be monitoring the situation closely throughout the weekend and I will not hesitate to authorize DDC officials to report a major incident if we see signs of the kind of congestion that was observed last weekend.” Drivers try to avoid The Brock operation on the M20 has caused a lot of traffic on the surrounding roads. (Image: PA) The statement of a major incident would “force the issue” and “provoke a stronger response” from the authorities, Mr Bartlett said. Passengers heading to the port are advised to leave “a lot of extra time”. National Highways said: “All drivers planning to travel in or through Kent should plan ahead, follow the diversion signs, check before traveling and leave plenty of extra time for their journey.” DFDS ferries report two-hour delays in their services from Dover to Calais and do not accept P&O customers. The company’s tonnage manager, Chris Parker, urged people not to travel to the port unless they had booked in advance. DFDS had acquired P&O customers, was left without a transfer when the company laid off 800 people and canceled its services in March. The update was announced on P&O’s Twitter account. (Image: PA) But it will not take these passengers on the “rush weekend”. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Parker said: “We can not take the full cargo of our own passengers and then have more passengers than P&O, we just do not have the capacity. “We decided it would be best to focus on our own passengers and not disappoint P&O passengers arriving at the port. Read more related articles Read more related articles “The worst thing is for people to come and say, ‘We’re really sorry but we do not have room for you.’ “It’s unfortunate.” All six DFDS vessels operate at full capacity on Friday, with 54 voyages along the English Channel. Mr Parker urged people to make advanced bookings and not “show up at the port”. He said, “We will not be able to process you.” A 23-mile section of the M20 in Kent remains closed as part of Operation Brock. We will bring you the latest updates, photos and videos for this breaking news. Do not miss the latest news from all over Scotland and beyond – Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.
