The first day of the Easter long weekend saw a flood of Canadians heading south through the Aldergrove border crossing into Lynden.
On Friday, April 15, there were lineups as far back as 3B Avenue on 264th Street, the Aldergrove-Bellingham Highway, that stretched half a kilometre, resulting in waits of more than an hour.
Evidently anticipating heavy southbound traffic for the first long weekend since COVID restrictions were eased, U.S. Customs and Border Protection opened four lanes for the first day of the Easter holiday at the Lynden crossing.
Other B.C. border crossings reported even longer wait times, with delays at the Pacific Highway border crossing in South Surrey reportedly running two-and-a-half hours.
RCMP warned the public of “much longer than usual waits” at the Peace Arch and Pacific Highway border crossings.
By Saturday, congestion had eased at all crossings, with the waits at Aldergrove to get into Lynden, with two lanes open, peaking at around 15 minutes in the afternoon.
READ ALSO: B.C. holiday travellers find long waits at borders, ferries, airports
On the return leg, Aldergrove was reporting northbound travellers were waiting just three minutes, the shortest of any B.C. border crossing.
Traffic was up, slightly, on Easter Monday.
Updates for southbound travellers can be found online at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website, and the Canada Border Services Agency site.
Wait times at ferries, border crossings and airports were all longer than normal.
YVR reported the highest passenger volumes in over two years, and B.C. Ferries announced sailing cancellations and schedule adjustments after the Queen of Oak Bay had a breakdown on Thursday night, leaving travellers adrift for three hours before tugboats brought the ferry ashore.
READ MORE: Tugboats help BC Ferries vessel to Nanaimo after steering issue
As of April 1, fully vaccinated travellers coming into Canada do not need to show a negative COVID test upon entry. However, travellers may still be randomly selected for COVID testing and are required to fill out information on the ArriveCAN app.
The busiest travel days for the Easter long weekend were expected to be Friday and Monday afternoon.
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