Calais migrant crisis: Your stories of travelling between the UK and France

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Migrants surrounding lorries outside CalaisImage source, PA

Around 2,000 migrants tried to enter the Channel Tunnel's freight terminal in Calais on Monday night in an attempt to reach the UK.

Eurotunnel is facing a daily struggle to maintain its service and has been beset with serious delays, affecting local residents, holidaymakers and truck drivers.

You have been sharing your stories and pictures as you travel between France and the UK.

Truck drivers

William Hyde, emails: "I am an HGV owner and I travel to the continent twice a week through Calais.

Because of the problems it is taking me twice as long to do my business and therefore my driving hours have been exceeded every week.

Consequently I have to do less work and therefore I am losing money, I do not know how long I can sustain this."

Sean spoke to the BBC, he said: "I am an HGV driver from Glasgow doing regular transport journeys to France. Things have become so bad that yesterday it took me 23 hours to travel from Junction 8 on the M20 in Kent to Calais.

When I phoned Kent Police after 15 hours in traffic and told them I had livestock on board and that its welfare was jeopardised, I was given a police escort from Junction 8 all the way to Dover, even after making the officer aware that it was now illegal for me to drive.

We bypassed thousands of stranded lorries."

Holidaymakers

Image source, @timskipper

David Bracey in Maidstone, UK, emails: "We had booked to travel to Paris this weekend in an 80-year-old car to participate in a classic car event and had been looking forward to it for months.

However, it is meant to be fun and with the current Eurotunnel problems we were starting to get very worried so have cancelled everything.

So very disappointing as this was to be our family summer holiday.

We live near Maidstone and are affected by operation stack every time it's in place. It's become an absolute nightmare."

Colin Brett from Dumfries is currently stuck on Eurostar train at Calais. "I'm currently stuck on a Eurostar train which was due to depart at 10:25 local time.

This has been delayed to allow an inspection of the train for someone who has got underneath it.

The atmosphere is pretty calm at the moment.

We haven't seen any migrants although there is an enormous stack of lorries in the area.

Governments have got to do something about security of the Tunnel otherwise it is not worth using.

So far UK and French governments have done nothing."

Carrie McGuire, Manchester, UK, emails: "We are travelling to Vendee on 7th August via Eurotunnel.

My concern is increasing due to the fact we are camping and have two small children with us.

We have a seven hour drive from Calais to St Jean de Monts.

We calculated our route to get there for about 6pm.

The campsite we are staying at doesn't allow you to arrive after 8pm.

I am extremely concerned that with the delays we are going to have to sleep in the car with two small children."

Residents in Kent

Claire Oliver in Ramsgate, UK, emails: "The situation in Kent has become a nightmare.

Kent County council have for years ignored the traffic problems we face in this part of Kent.

My brother goes to school in Folkestone and I help with picking him up and we end up having to drive round half of Folkestone to find a way to get home.

In Ramsgate we have an airport doing nothing, and a port sitting there unused. Why is no one using these as a way to help freight traffic across to France?

If the situation is that bad in Calais then use Dunkirk. Anything rather then let this situation carry on being such a burden for the people of Kent."

Tammy Howard tweeted: 6 mile journey home from work in Maidstone takes 1 hr 20 mins ridiculous

While Cearon O'Flynn had another long journey - he tweeted: From Kings Hill to Chatham yesterday ~30 min trip took over 2 hours all thanks to #OpStack

More general comment

Image source, @JaneWatkinson

@StevenSaxon2 shares his thoughts about the lorry drivers and tweets: Why is there never any concern for the lorry drivers? They must be worried to death.

Finally, there has been concern about the transportation of perishable goods reaching their destination in time. @333doc1 tweets: What about the food products being carried. Need to be binned if immigrants get onboard.