Multi-kilometer queues have formed at several crossing points on the Ukrainian-Polish border as citizens return home for holidays [1, 2].

These delays highlight the ongoing strain on border infrastructure during peak travel seasons. The surge in passenger traffic creates significant bottlenecks for those attempting to enter or exit the country, impacting regional mobility.

At some checkpoints, the wait to exit Ukraine has exceeded 13 hours [1]. A TSN correspondent said, "Очікування на виїзд займає понад 13 годин."

Traffic congestion is particularly severe at three specific locations. At the Shehyni crossing, 70 cars were reported waiting [4]. An Obozrevatel reporter said, "У пункті пропуску "Шегині" очікують 70 авто." Meanwhile, the Krakivka crossing saw 60 cars in line, and the Ugryniv crossing recorded 10 cars [4].

The current congestion follows a pattern of high demand seen earlier this year. Reports of large queues were previously recorded on April 11 and June 6 [5, 6].

Recent data indicates a continuing trend of high volume. Crossings recorded a week earlier totaled 348,000 [1]. Additionally, there has been an increase of 17,000 exits this week [1].

Officials said the congestion is due to a surge in passenger traffic as Ukrainians return home for holidays and Easter [7, 8]. The increased demand at western border checkpoints has consistently outpaced the processing capacity of the facilities during these windows.

“Очікування на виїзд займає понад 13 годин.”

The recurring nature of these bottlenecks—appearing in April, June, and again in July—suggests that the Ukrainian-Polish border crossings lack the scalable infrastructure needed to handle seasonal spikes in passenger volume. The consistent delays during holiday periods indicate a systemic capacity issue rather than isolated incidents of congestion.