These two foot passengers are among the last who made the trip to France before the travel ban.

Only those with "compelling reasons" will be able to travel from 11pm tonight to the country from the UK - with tourists and business trips banned.

French nationals, as well as residents in France, are exempt - as well as hauliers.

Tourists and people travelling for other forms of business are to be shut out after a decision to close the border.

Our reporter, outside Dover Eastern Docks this morning, observed the port appearing to run normally.

The roads to the docks were reasonably free of congestion.

There were a few brief and gradually moving queues on the A20 going towards the roundabout but most vehicles were turning for Jubilee Way and not the docks.

Dover TAP (Traffic assessment Project), to control traffic flows during the busy Christmas period, has been in place today between the Western Heights roundabout and Hawkinge.

So it is though these queues may from buildups of vehicles there.

The Port of Dover says numbers of vehicles on this roadway today are typical for this time of year but it has noted high volumes of tourist and freight traffic.

It is advising travellers to allow for 120 minutes to complete border controls and check-in.

The ferry Company DFDS advised people to give the same margin of error, warning that it had become busy too.

Thousands of people were trying to take the last chance to travel to France before the ban today such as by sea or Channel Tunnel.

A Port of Dover spokesman said: “The changes announced by the French reflect the continuing challenges posed to our key international tourist route.

"Due to the existing barrier of Covid-19, tourism volumes through this gateway are already significantly reduced and these recent changes are another dampener on the pre-Christmas getaway period.

"We urge customers to contact their chosen ferry operator for the latest information and to follow Government travel advice."

"HGV drivers are exempt from these changes and freight continues to move through the port in order to ensure goods reach their destinations, keeping shelves stacked for Christmas.”

The new variant of coronavirus is running rampant in the UK.

This country yesterday recording 88,376 new infections of Covid-19, the worst ever such figure in a daily count since the pandemic began nearly two years ago.

The allowance of lorries to still go to France may prevent the pandemonium last December when the port roads were gridlocked for days.

This was because the French closed their borders when the Delta form of Covid-19 spread rapidly but they stopped all lorry and passenger traffic coming through.

KentOnline has contacted the port authority and cross-Channel operators to find out any new developments today concerning travel before the ban comes in.

More as we get it.