French Ferry Workers Blockade Channel Tunnel

Protesting ferry workers temporarily blocked French road access to the undersea rail tunnel linking France to Britain on Tuesday, a Eurotunnel spokesman said.

Employees of the Eurotunnel-owned MyFerryLink service - whose ferries the company plans to sell - brought traffic in the tunnel to a standstill for a whole day last month, also disrupting seabound travel from the port of Calais, in protest at the sale.

Syndicat Maritime Nord union spokesman Eric Vercoutre said the blockade of the A16 road into the tunnel was now at an end, but that another one was planned for this afternoon.

A spokesman for France's road traffic authority said short stoppages were likely to take place throughout the day.

The Eurotunnel spokesman could not immediately provide details of any delays, but the Le Shuttle car-carrying rail service tweeted a recommendation that travellers on day return tickets reschedule their journeys.

Reporting by Dominique Vidalon