Like many of you, I’m fed up with getting stuck in traffic because of Operation Brock on the M20.
It’s deployed far too often and blocks up our road network which isn’t fair on local residents or businesses. I know HGVs also try to avoid the queue by rat-running on roads like the A20 and A251. I’ve been pushing the Government, Kent County Council and National Highways for a solution to it for some time now.
I sat down with National Highways last month who assured me they want Operation Brock in place for as little time as possible. It’s expensive to activate (with no extra funding), and once the decision is made, there’s little flexibility because they depend on suppliers, who can take days to mobilise. The decision is triggered when the Port of Dover tells them they are expecting high levels of traffic, but sometimes that doesn’t happen in practice. I've written to the Port Authority to ask them to explain what’s going on and why they are triggering the inconvenience of Brock when it’s not needed - scroll down to read my letter.
I pushed National Highways to look at better options like ‘Mini Brock’ which involves introducing lorry queueing just after Junction 8 and would avoid closing the Junction. They said this would reduce lorry capacity by about 10%, but National Highways believe the benefits would outweigh this loss. They are also exploring whether Brock could be deployed or removed with 48 hours’ notice, instead of the current minimum of 7 days.
National Highways have drafted their proposal for this, discussed it with the Kent and Medway Resilience Forum, and are now in talks with the Department for Transport. I will continue discussions with National Highways and will press the issue in Parliament if necessary.
(Photo credit: Andy Jones)
