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Freight breathes sigh of relief over quarantine rules – updated

[ May 26, 2020   //   ]

The Freight Transport Association welcomed the government’s intention to exempt truck drivers and freight transport workers from the new quarantine regulations that come into force on 8 June.

Other travellers arriving in UK ports and seaports will have to confine themselves to an agreed address for 14 days.

The reciprocal quarantine period applied by the French authorities on people arriving on the UK does not apply to freight workers either, nor to crew members of passenger and cargo flights or to train drivers and crew.

Head of multimodal and international policy, Alex Veitch, said: “Maintaining the smooth flow of goods across borders is vital to the country’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak, so FTA is pleased to see workers within the haulage and freight industry are exempt from the government’s new measures. As the business group representing the logistics sector, we look forward to working with government on the implementation of its safety policies at borders to ensure the integrity of supply chains are protected while preventing the spread of COVID-19.”

Eurotunnel operator Getlink meanwhile said that the new provisions would not change its plansfor freight or passenger transport.

Truck traffic has been on the rise for the past two weeks with truck drivers protected by health measures put into place since the beginning of the pandemic.

But the British Ports Association said it was concerned that the new measures would stifle the recovery of international maritime passenger travel. It called fpr a risk-based approach to ‘transit corridors’ and recognition that ferry travel to neighbouring countries could be much safer than other transport options.

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