Plans for a huge lorry park to deal with Operation Stack are being questioned by Eurotunnel, which says it will not provide the solution to the problem.

And the Port of Dover has also raised concerns about the scheme, suggesting that there may not be any need for it.

The two operators set out their concerns in submissions to Highways England. It is weighing up options after a public consultation on two options for a lorry park on a site off the M20 near Stanford, Folkestone.

Eurotunnel spokesman John Keefe said the company’s submission had raised several issues about the £250m scheme.

“We do not believe that the lorry park solution is the way to to deal with Operation Stack. Last year was an unprecedented year with the migrant activity around the port of Calais. Since that issue has been resolved, we have not had Operation Stack in place once.”

We do not think that taking traffic off the road and situating it on a holding area is going to benefit anybody - Eurotunnel spokesman John Keefe

He added the company had taken action itself to help extend the capacity of the Cheriton terminal. It was also increasing the number of freight trains that meant freight departures every seven and a half minutes compared to every ten minutes.

“We do not think that taking traffic off the road and situating it on a holding area is going to benefit anybody. There has been confusion over between two things: Operation Stack and the problem of overnight parking, which is not related to Operation Stack.”

The problems could be addressed by using other parts of the motorway network and increasing the capacity by adding extra lanes, he added.

“It is about looking at the bigger picture if you are spending £250m on something that stops traffic and holding it on a site off the motorway.”

The option of dualling single-lane stretches of the A2 should be part of a wider strategy, he added.

Meanwhile, the Port of Dover has also expressed reservations.

It has told Highways England a relief lorry park could create more problems than it solved.
The port’s submission states: “There is a real risk of trying to create a panacea, the effects of which creates more issues than it solves.”

It emphasises that last summer’s disruption over an uninterrupted 35-day period were “unique and unprecedented” and once the root causes were addressed “the status quo resumed quickly.”

It says there is a “substantial risk” that “investing a large sum of money” in dealing with Operation Stack will lead to “other elements” added on to justify the costs - a reference to the option of operating it as an overnight lorry park throughout the year.

While the port offers support for the Stanford West option, it states that the site’s location 23km from the port “is clearly going to have significant impacts on the port’s business.”

It also queries whether the relief lorry park will be able to release 400 HGVs an hour saying “there is great concern regarding the practical application” of the way it would operate.

It argues the lorry park should be one element of a wider strategy that included the option of making more of the A2 a dual carriageway to deal with hauliers diverting away from the M20.

There is also a warning about job losses in Dover if existing lorry park services, such as Stop24 in Folkestone and the Ashford International Truckstop face unfair competition.

“We are extremely worried that this could force the closure of businesses in Dover, leading to loss of jobs and economic activity in the area,” states the Port of Dover.

The port handles 2.5m freight vehicles each year and carries 13m passengers and is a major contributor to the county and country’s economy.

The concerns of the two cross-channel operators are likely to add to the uncertainty about the lorry park plan, which is facing mounting opposition locally. The proposal has also triggered protests locally, with a campaign group SOS Kent saying the park plan is not the solution.

Highways England is expected to announce which of the two lorry park options it favours shortly.