Hundreds of lorries are reportedly passing through a sleepy village in Kent, 'shaking homes' and disturbing residents' sleep.

In recent weeks, traffic has been directed off of the M20 at Ashford as part of Highways England motorway resurfacing coastbound, while work on the London-bound carriageway started this week.

Villagers in Sellindge on the A20 now say they're concerned the traffic and noise will only get worse, with more works planned in the future.

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Resident Toby Price said: "My wife and I are not able to get a good nights rest due to the lorries and excessive traffic.

"Apart from the noise, the house shakes considerably. We are set about fifty yards back from the road, whereas some are much closer.

"We have just had one set of roadworks almost finish... We currently seem to be the go to for traffic lights, road works and developments."

A resident who lives on the A20 but asked not to be named said potholes are a factor: "If it was a brand new road surface, the lorries wouldn't be vibrating as much.

"The shaking is a direct response from the weight of the vehicles. It's going through our bed."

Some residents have also been filming the congestion late at night to send to the authorities.

Jayne Robinson from Hythe travelled on the A20 this week: "I had to follow lorries signalling to pull off, probably looking for somewhere to sleep only to swerve out again when lay-bys were full.

"This was at 1am... This is an accident waiting to happen."

But Ashley Attwell, a lorry driver, says its not HGV drivers' fault that Sellindge is the diversion route: "We are not here to upset people. I've personally reported junctions 9 to 13 on the M20 five times now."

Mr Attwell was born in Sellindge and now lives in Folkestone: "It's a nationwide thing. It's not just Sellindge. What should take me five or six hours worth of driving is taking me nine or ten.

"We're restricted by law on our timings too... It's all a knock-on effect."

A Highways England spokesman said: "We are currently resurfacing the M20 near junction 10 and have to close the road while we carry out this essential work for safety reasons. When the road is closed, we divert traffic via a diversion agreed with Kent County council, which uses the A28/A2.

"We have also installed some variable message signs at the Port of Dover during the London-bound closures to direct lorries via the A2/M2.

“We understand some road users are ignoring the diversion and using the A20 instead, which is causing problems to local residents. We are currently reviewing plans with Kent County Council to see what more we can do to encourage traffic to use the agreed diversion.”

They also said installing a contraflow, where a lane travels in the opposite direction, is not possible in order to create a smooth surface to resist to weather and wear and tear for longer.

A spokesman for Freight Transport Association said: “The nature of freight and logistics industries means that haulage must operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure that groceries reach our supermarket shelves, waste is collected from our homes and businesses, our petrol stations are refuelled and vital medicines reach our hospitals.

"Although road closures are unwelcome, they are also unavoidable, as they are vital to protect the workforce involved in the maintenance of our strategic road network, such as the M20, and local roads, which needs to be undertaken overnight to ensure minimal disruption to busy routes during daylight.

"If residents believe laws are being broken, they should be reporting the incidents to the police.”