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UK to build truck park to ease traffic when Channel services disrupted

CONSTRUCTION is to start in the UK soon on a big truck park near Stanford in Kent as a long-term solution to the problems caused on the M20 and surrounding roads when Operation Stack is used when cross-Channel services are disrupted.

The government announced that spaces will be available from summer 2017, reported Lloyd's Loading List.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said it would help keep the M20 moving during disruption to cross-channel services, "helping companies go about their business and other drivers and residents go about their lives as normally as possible".

Operation Stack was used on a record 32 days last year as the area was hit with unprecedented disruption in the summer. Following this experience, in last year's Autumn Statement the government announced it would be providing up to GBP250 million (US$323.68 million) for a permanent truck park.

Mr McLoughlin said: "The new lorry area by the M20 will deliver better journeys for drivers and will not only support the region's economy but also businesses as far away as Scotland that rely on the M20 to access the port of Dover and the Channel Tunnel.

"Operation Stack is only ever used as a last resort but we recognise the impact it has on roads in Kent, and are determined to deliver an alternative solution."

The government is exploring using the site for overnight parking, relieving pressure caused by some drivers parking in unsuitable or illegal locations. The truck area will provide parking for up to 3,600 vehicles.

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) welcomed the announcement of the new lorry area, saying it will ease pressure on Kent's roads and keep businesses moving and describing it as a long-term solution to the traffic chaos on the M20 and surrounding roads when there are problems at the Port of Dover.