[jdblair]

Two years ago on our summer holiday we were driving in our camper van from northern Italy to Chamonix through the Mont Blanc tunnel. We were surprised to encounter a similar passport check, before entering the queue to pass through the tunnel.

Last summer I was half way from Amsterdam to Berlin in my van when I remembered I had forgot my passport. I am an American citizen with a Netherlands residency permit, and I remembered the experience the previous summer so I turned around and blew my first day on extra travel. I passed through 4 countries on that trip and I never needed my passport.