In the past few days, the media and social networks have been flooded with testimonies of passengers who have been waiting for several hours to cross borderCrowds were also recorded at airports, where many missed their flights.
The International Council of Airports of Europe warned that EES the system is already causing delays of up to three hours. A case was recorded on a flight from Brussels to Great Britain where 51 passengers were missing.
Current status - no hold for cars
Although large crowds were noticeable at the borders with Croatia, Hungary and other EU countries during the weekend, the situation has stabilized in the meantime.
According to the data of the Automobile Association of Serbia, there are currently no delays for passenger vehicles, while freight vehicles wait about 120 minutes at the Batrovci and Šid crossings, and about 60 minutes at the Kelebija crossing.
The new system makes the wait longer
The director of the National Association of Tourist Agencies of Serbia, Aleksandar Seničić, tells "Vreme" that crowds are not new, especially during holidays, but that the new system of entry and exit from the EU introduces additional delays.
"There was always a crowd at the borders during the holidays, because the highways are overloaded and there are not enough gates for passage. This is the basic problem, regardless of the new system," explains Senicic.
With the introduction of the new system, in addition to passports, border services take the biometric data of travelers when crossing the border, including fingerprints and a photo of the face, and all data is digitally recorded.
He adds that EES does not drastically prolong crossing the border, but changes the overall dynamics. "Previously, the passport was examined and stamped in about half a minute, and now the whole process takes about a minute per passenger. It doesn't seem like much, but when you have a large number of people in front of you, the delay inevitably gets longer," says Aleksandar Seničić.
Photo: Tanjug/ Jadranka IlićAleksandar Senicic
What awaits us in the summer season
The biggest challenges come with the summer season, especially when it comes to bus transportation. "The biggest problem will be people who travel by bus, because a large number of border crossings have only one or two lanes for them," Senicic warns, adding that he does not see a clear solution.
He points out that the problem is not only in the new system of entering and leaving the country, but also in the infrastructure. "On the Croatian border, the highway comes directly to the crossing and there is no way to separate the buses earlier. At other crossings, the situation is a bit better and there we are trying to provide more gates for buses to pass through, especially towards Greece, Bulgaria and Hungary," says Seničić.
He also emphasizes that the delays for buses have already been significantly extended. He says that it used to take 30 to 40 minutes for a bus to check passports, but now the process takes at least an hour. "When you have 50 buses at the border, it becomes a serious problem," warns the director of the National Association of Truistic Agencies of Serbia.
Airports in the European Union under pressure
The situation is similar at airports in European Union countries, where the EES system is applied. Aleksandar Seničić says that there are no such problems here, because this system is not implemented at airports in Serbia and adds that there is no need for passengers to leave for our airports so early, as is advised in some media.
Large crowds were recorded at the busiest European airports in the previous days. "Those airports are known to be crowded, not because of us, because this system applies to 59 countries, including Great Britain and the USA, and the majority of those tourists come to Europe," says Seničić.
Photo: Tanjug / Jadranka IlićAirport "Nikola Tesla
He adds that the European Association of Airports asked the European Commission to postpone the introduction of the system until after the summer, because there is not enough equipment or people, but the commission rejected that request.
The director of the National Association of Tourist Agencies of Serbia also says that Serbia is not a significant market. "Up to two million people travel from our country annually, while four to five million British tourists come to Spain alone during the season," emphasizes Senicic. According to information available to Yuta, British tourists are increasingly turning to destinations where this system is not available, primarily Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia.
Travelers will have to adapt
Aleksandar Seničić emphasizes that this is a permanent change and that passengers will have to adapt. "This system has been introduced and will remain. When everything works properly, it is not dramatic, but it requires different travel planning. Simply, you will have to start earlier and count on longer delays at the borders," concludes the director of the National Association of Travel Agencies of Serbia.
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