By Rhys Griffiths
Calls to finally end the traffic nightmare situation on the county’s roads echoed again this week after thousands were stuck for hours at the Channel ports.
Maidstone council leader David Burton said the authority is “constantly lobbying” the government to resolve the situation which led to gridlock and huge delays on Kent’s roads between Friday and Monday.
Residents in the county town were once again warned to prepare extra time over the weekend as Junction 8 of the M20 was closed to all non-freight traffic with cars diverted on to the already crowded A20 routes coastbound.
The stretch from Maidstone to Folkestone closed entirely to traffic other than HGVs as Operation Brock returned to block motorists getting on to the M20.
Speaking at the weekend, Cllr Burton said: “Once again traffic disruption at the Port of Dover impacts all of us in Kent and now with Operation Brock being extended this will affect Maidstone residents and businesses.
“It is so disruptive to the people who live and visit the Maidstone area and we are constantly lobbying for a permanent solution. This situation cannot be allowed to continue.”
Coastal Kent has been branded the “hotspot of holiday hell” after roads leading to both the Port of Dover and Channel Tunnel were left gridlocked.
The start of the big summer getaway saw holidaymakers and hauliers alike stuck for hours on the roads around Folkestone and Dover as they attempted to reach France.
As a result of the delays to cross-Channel traffic, local roads were snarled up and many people were simply forced to abandon plans, whether trips to the shops, days out or hospital appointments.
The motoring mayhem began on Friday morning after traffic to the Eastern Docks in Dover swelled to the extent that Harbour Board bosses were forced to declare a “critical incident” as the town became overwhelmed by the sheer weight of vehicles trying to reach the ferries.
Port chief executive Doug Bannister pinned the blame for the hold-ups on French border controls being “insufficiently resourced” to deal with the volume of traffic at the start of the school summer holidays and then later turned the blame on Brexit.
Dover MP Natalie Elphicke was quick to echo the suggestion staffing levels among