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Logistics UK badgers government over Operation Brock

[ May 22, 2024   //   ]

Logistics UK is urging government to find a permanent alternative to its Operation Brock traffic management scheme for the Channel ports.

Originally developed as a traffic management scheme in the event of a No Deal Brexit, Operation Brock is the contraflow system set up to keep traffic on the M20 and surrounding roads in Kent moving in the event of disruption to ferry or shuttle services.

The M20 is set to be closed overnight on 22 May to enable the deployment of the scheme which will be in place until 3 June to manage the anticipated Bank Holiday surge in vehicles, at a cost of thousands of pounds to Kent taxpayers.

Logistics UK’s Head of Trade Nichola Mallon said, however: “For the past seven years, since the Brexit vote, the logistics industry has been subjected to delays caused by the deployment of Operation Brock, yet a permanent solution to the plan has yet to be found. While held in the queues along the M20, drivers have no access to refreshments or toilet facilities often for hours on end. This is not acceptable.

“Logistics workers were deemed ‘essential’ to the UK’s economy during the pandemic, but they are being failed every time Brock is deployed.  And with the new Entry and Exit System set to be implemented by the EU in October this year at the juxtaposed borders at the Short Straits, Operation Brock looks set to become a permanent feature.”

Mallon added: “As an island, Britain is dependent on imports of fresh produce at key times of the year, and those providing these deliveries and carrying UK exports to the EU deserve to spend their legally mandated breaks away from their vehicles to get sufficient rest. A permanent solution for Operation Brock is needed, and fast, before hauliers decide not to fulfil contracts to deliver to the UK. As Logistics UK has been saying for some time, logistics operators need the support of government to ensure that the UK’s borders do not become a barrier to the movement of goods.”

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