The FTA has said it is frustrated by Highways England’s rejection of a contraflow system on the M20, which it said would relieve the unprecedented and continuing Operation Stack congestion.
The idea of introducing contraflow on the motorway, which has today seen Operation Stack implemented on it for the 16th time in just five weeks, was borne out of a summit in Kent last Friday.
At the summit where representatives from the FTA, Kent Police and local MPs among others who discussed potential solutions to the ongoing problem.
The summit concluded the M20 contraflow was an ideal immediate solution to relieve some of the financial burden on companies affected by the Calais chaos, which the FTA predicted could be costing the industry up to £750,000 every day, and the over-frequent employment of Operation Stack, and tasked Highways England with finding a way to execute it.
However, Highways England told the FTA it believed the safety risks would be too great to road users and rejected the idea altogether.
Natalie Chapman, FTA head of policy for South East England, said: “FTA is hugely frustrated by the rejection of the suggestion of a contraflow being introduced on the M20.
"This would be preferable to the current situation when Operation Stack is implemented on the motorway which has a devastating impact on local businesses and communities.
“We understand that Highways England have looked at the contraflow option and are concerned at the risk to safety in introducing this, but the fact remains that we still need a safe and workable solution.”
Chapman later told Commercialmotor.com: “Of course we need it to be safe. But at the end of the day the short-term solution, whatever it is, probably won’t be the ideal situation.
"But it’s about what is the lesser of the evils. Are the problems greater than those we’re already facing? Stack is back in today and it will probably continue throughout the summer.
She added: “The most frustrating thing isn’t that the contraflow has been rejected, but that no other solution ha been put forward. We haven’t got a plan B.”
Image: Press Association
