Lorries queue on the approach to the Port of Dover

by Martin Jefferies

mjefferies@thekmgroup.co.uk

The sight of lorries queuing for miles through Dover could soon be a thing of the past.

More than £6 million is to be spent on a 'mini Operation Stack' – a holding area for 220 lorries at the Port of Dover.

Queued bumper to bumper, the trucks would stretch for nearly three miles – roughly the distance between the entrance to the docks and Samphire Hoe along the A20.

Mike Krayenbrink, director of port development at Dover Harbour Board, said: "It certainly won't resolve the need for Operation Stack if, as it were, France was closed, but it should delay the point at which there is congestion on the main approach roads into the town.

"The ferry terminal is effectively a processing system, so if you allow traffic to move through more easily, you can increase the total capacity of the port as a whole. It will allow us to accept more traffic at busy times – potentially an extra 200,000 lorries every year."

Extensive changes to the layout of the port will be needed to accommodate the new holding area.

The ground floor of the current passenger building will be turned into a search area for the UK Border Agency, as well as facilities for foot passengers.

The travel centre, nearby buildings and an outbound vehicle ramp will be removed before construction can start on the new holding area and outbound traffic routes.

Work is due to finish in late 2013 or early 2014.

Mr Krayenbrink said the work would be carried out in stages to cause as little disruption as possible, particularly during the Olympic Games next year, when large numbers of people are expected to travel through the port from continental Europe.