Automatic border control performed with vehicles for the first time
Berlin, 8 October 2020. At the ferry port of Dunkirk, on the shore of the English Channel, a fully automated border control system to check the occupants of vehicles was successfully tested under real-life conditions for the first time. As part of a technological evaluation, Veridos, one of the world’s leading identity solution providers, partnered with the Austrian Institute of Technology and Magnetic Autocontrol to create an innovative eGate-type solution.
During the FastPass Hauts-de-France project initiated by the Regional Council and tested at the Dunkirk ferry port, Veridos and its partners were able to guarantee the smooth clearance of people in vehicles crossing the border.
This technological evaluation helped test how the process of checking passengers in a vehicle should be implemented, without requiring them to leave the vehicle or hand over ID documents. The sensor-controlled automatic barriers made it possible to automate and considerably speed up the person-checking process without additional personnel. This method enables one to check up to four occupants within the same vehicle.
The FastPass Hauts-de-France project, under the direction of the consortium of the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), is the product of a partnership that began in the context of the European FastPass research project (FP 7). There, Veridos and its partners developed a solution providing an integrated response to the requirements of automated border checkpoints in the context of air, sea, and land transportation. In parallel, an emphasis has been placed on the best possible use of the technologies developed for the end-users of the systems (border checkpoint personnel and travelers).
“We are very pleased with the results of the evaluation,” says Dr. Silke Bargstädt-Franke, Head of Product Management at Veridos. “This innovative solution considerably reduces the workload of border control officers, allowing them to focus on the checks that require a more detailed investigation. At the same time, the automated process remains under their control. As the results of the individual checks performed by the eGate are displayed live on the screen, the border control officers are monitoring the system and can always intervene in the automated process.”
With the FastPass Hauts-de-France project, the authorities of the region are playing a pioneering role in the exploration of automation of border management in the EU.
