The transportation sector is deeply worried about the introduction of German border controls as of 16 September. Sector organisation Transport en Logistiek Nederland (TLN) fears great economic and social damage to the sector. In the ornamentals sector, responses are mixed. Not everyone expects things to become so bad, particularly at the Dutch-German border.
On Monday 9 September, Germany announced a six-month period of passport controls at all national borders, including the one with the Netherlands. This has worried the transport sector. “During Covid and the European Football Championship in Germany, we saw the kind of profound problems border controls can cause. Drivers sometimes faced inhumane waiting times. Also, every hour of delay costs one hundred euros per driver,” states TLN. TLN is the employers' association for road transport companies and logistics service providers.
TLN fears grave economic and social damage, with the border controls leading to the late arrival of products, the disruption of trade flows and serious upsetting of haulers’ schedules. “Germany is the largest economy in the EU and is thus undermining the Schengen Agreement and the free movement of goods. This has grave consequences for a group of professionals who have nothing to do with this.”
