The European Commission has agreed to a trial of airport-style biometric border controls at the Eurotunnel, allowing passengers to remain in their cars while fingerprint and facial checks are performed at drive-through kiosks. The system is intended to prevent chaos in Folkestone and Calais.
Yann Leriche, chief executive of Getlink, the Eurotunnel owner, said the company had tried to replicate the airport experience but wanted to go further. Both sides are now equipped with 120 kiosks using an eagle-eye camera system, already used at Rome and Paris airports, which will be monitored by police.
The EES requires all third-country citizens, including British passport holders, to submit fingerprints and facial images when entering and exiting the Schengen area. It was scheduled to go live across the EU by 9 September, but nine member states, including France, have yet to deploy it fully because of continued technical issues. The Eurotunnel crossing has long been a logistical nightmare and a potential cause of miles-long tailbacks.
Leriche said that after extensive discussions with European and French authorities, permission was granted to trial eagle-eye cameras. Earlier proposals had involved handing passengers a tablet to self-fingerprint in their cars or requiring them to park and enter a terminal, both of which would have required physical police presence for first-time fingerprinting. Leriche said the company had been inspired by visits to US-Mexico border controls.
The trial is set to last two years, with the hope it will become permanent. The requirement for a police officer to be present during first-time fingerprinting was designed as a safeguard against subterfuge, such as a criminal using a fellow passenger with a clean-skin fingerprint. Leriche said he had no idea when the system would be introduced by France, adding that the kiosks are in place and can function, but the connection with the French system is still not working.
This week it emerged that the EU had filed a lawsuit against IBM and two other companies involved in the implementation of the EES.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The agreement resolves a major logistical bottleneck at one of Europe's busiest border crossings, potentially preventing hours of queues for millions of passengers.
- If successful, the 'intelligent border' trial could set a precedent for how biometric checks are rolled out at other vehicle border crossings in Europe.
- The ongoing EES delays and the related lawsuit against IBM highlight significant systemic challenges for the EU's new digital border regime.
Background
The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) is a large-scale digital border project designed to replace manual passport stamping with biometric registration for non-EU travellers crossing the Schengen area border. Its rollout has been repeatedly delayed due to technical problems in several member states. The Eurotunnel presents a unique challenge due to the high volume of vehicles and the potential for disruption if passengers cannot be processed efficiently. Getlink has been advocating for a drive-through solution to avoid forcing passengers to park and process in a terminal building.
Key Perspectives
Yann Leriche, Getlink CEO: says the new system will prevent chaos and is more efficient for authorities, and that the idea was inspired by US-Mexico border controls.
European Commission and French authorities: according to Leriche, they are aligned on the trial, viewing it as a more efficient solution.
What to Watch
- When the French government resolves its technical EES issues to allow the trial to begin.
- The outcome of the EU's lawsuit against IBM and other companies over EES implementation failures.
- Whether the two-year trial becomes a permanent model and is adopted by other transport hubs.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
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- Partly supportedThe UK and EU have agreed to an Eurotunnel trial.UK news | The Guardian: “In the coming weeks, Leriche will meet UK and French authorities presenting a 40-page proposal to allow Eurotunnel to become a “laboratory” for an “intelligent border” using emerging tech and lessons learned from the US and Singapore.”
- SupportedThe European Commission has agreed to a trial of airport-style biometric controls at Eurotunnel, with passengers staying in their cars for fingerprint and facial checks at drive-through kiosks.UK news | The Guardian: “Instead of getting out of the car and getting biometrics taken at a terminal building, holidaymakers and business travellers will now be greeted with special drive-through terminals in Folkestone and Calais.”
- SupportedThe system is intended to prevent chaos in Folkestone and Calais.UK news | The Guardian: “Airport-style passport and fingerprinting controls are to be introduced at Eurotunnel in an attempt to prevent “short-term and long-term chaos” in Folkestone and Calais .”
- SupportedDrive-through biometric kiosks are planned for Folkestone and Calais.UK news | The Guardian: “holidaymakers and business travellers will now be greeted with special drive-through terminals in Folkestone and Calais.”
- SupportedYann Leriche is Getlink’s chief executive, and he said the company had tried to replicate the airport experience but wanted to go further.UK news | The Guardian: “Yann Leriche, the chief executive of Getlink, the Eurotunnel owner, said it had tried to replicate the “airport experience” but wanted to go much further.”
- SupportedBoth sides have 120 kiosks using an eagle-eye camera system, which will be monitored by police.UK news | The Guardian: “Both sides are now equipped with 120 kiosks under the case of an eagle-eye camera that will be monitored by police”
- SupportedThe EES requires all third-country citizens, including British passport holders, to submit fingerprints and facial images when entering and exiting the Schengen area.UK news | The Guardian: “The entry and exit system (EES) requires all third-country citizens including British passport holders to submit fingerprints and facial images as they enter and exit the Schengen area”
- SupportedThe EES was scheduled to be active across the EU by 9 September, but nine member states, including France, had not fully deployed it because of technical issues.UK news | The Guardian: “EES was supposed to be active across the EU by 9 September, but nine of the 27 EU member states, including France , have yet to be deploy it fully because of continued technical issues.”
- SupportedThe Eurotunnel crossing has long been a logistical nightmare and a potential cause of miles-long tailbacks.UK news | The Guardian: “It has always been a logistical nightmare for Eurotunnel and a potential cause of miles-long tailbacks at the approach to the terminal.”
- SupportedEarlier proposals involved self-fingerprinting with a tablet in cars or passengers parking and going into the terminal; both would have required police to be physically present for first-time fingerprinting.UK news | The Guardian: “Originally, Getlink had planned to use a tablet to hand to the passengers in their cars to allow them to self-fingerprint and capture a facial image. It also looked at a system involving passengers parking up and going into the terminal to get fingerprinting.”
- SupportedLeriche said the company was inspired by visits to US-Mexico border controls.UK news | The Guardian: “He said the company had been inspired by visits to the US/Mexico border controls, where drivers and passengers remain in their cars.”
- SupportedThe trial is set to last two years, with the hope that it will become permanent.UK news | The Guardian: “The trial will last two years, but Eurotunnel hopes the experiment will become permanent.”