Highways officials are being urged to review the way traffic is managed on the M20 while roadworks take place.

It follows a spate of crashes on the London-bound stretch between junctions 9 and 8 which have triggered long delays and miles of queues.

The latest incident involved a cement mixer which overturned and blocked the motorway just past junction 9 last Wednesday.

Earlier this month, a lorry caught fire at the same spot after its fuel tank was ruptured following contact with a concrete barrier on the inside lane.

Highways England has introduced the roadworks and reduced part of the stretch to two narrow lanes as it is working on a temporary solution to help avoid the need to activate Operation Stack.

The works, costing £25 million, are designed to provide a Brexit contingency plan in the event of congestion at the Port of Dover, caused by issues such as the need for more and lengthier customs checks.

The solution will allow for two-way travel on the London-bound carriageway of the M20 between junction 8 at Maidstone and junction 9 at Ashford, in the event that the coastbound carriageway is required to manage port-bound freight.

Work began in July but many motorists say the lanes are too narrow, making them susceptible to accidents between vehicles, particularly lorries.

On our website one reader said: “Every other day there is an accident in those roadworks, causing huge delays.

“Highways England needs to look at the traffic management again - there is obviously something not right.

“Perhaps the lanes are just a little too narrow.”

Last week, the concrete barrier was moved away from junction 9 towards Charing Heath to allow contractors to start work on the next section of motorway.

Former Ashford Borough Council leader Cllr Paul Bartlett (Con) says Highways England has a lot on its plate with junction 10a being built just a few miles away.

He said: “I do think the contractors are on top of the road management and I’m sure they will respond to these incidents to ensure it is operated safely.

“The problem Highways England has is that there are three big schemes along the M20 and two of them are close to one another.

“They are highly complicated schemes - I think it would be hard for them to do it any other way.”

He acknowledged that driving along the stretch of the motorway was “challenging” and there were issues when large lorries were overtaking.

Highways England spokesman Howard Rhoades said the safety of road users and its workforce is its “top priority”.

He said: “We have a duty to keep a balance of safety to our workforce and road users while also carrying out upgrades to this section of the motorway and keeping traffic moving.”