The leader of Maidstone council has questioned the need for the implementation of Operation Brock along the M20, saying it risks unnecessary disruption on Kent’s roads.

Highways England announced on Friday that it intended to introduce the controversial traffic management system despite the fact the government’s deadline to exit the EU by October 31 is now certain to be missed.

Cllr Martin Cox spoke on Paul On Politics on KMTV

Road chiefs came close to suspending its plan for the scheme to ‘go live’ from tomorrow in view of the ‘no deal’ Brexit deadline expected to pass on Friday.

Cllr Martin Cox (Lib Dem) voiced his concerns about the consequences for motorists and residents who would be baffled by the decision.

Speaking on the latest edition of “Paul On Politics” on KMTV, he said: "I am sure that people who use the M20 once and possibly twice a day will feel some confusion about this.

"If we're not leaving the EU, why does it have to go in straight away? I understand that it takes three or four days to put it in, but at the moment, aren't we saying that Brexit is definitely not going to happen on October 31?"

However, the introduction of Operation Brock along the M20 could prove beneficial in the long term, according to another council leader.

Cllr Jeremy Kite, the Conservative leader of Dartford council, said the government would be left under no illusion about the need to invest in improving Kent’s road network.

"Let's hope it works because it matters, hugely for our people and our economy. But the one thing that might come out of this is that I think there'll be a greater recognition post Brexit of actually how important the infrastructure is to us."

But he accepted the government shouldered some of the blame for the need for Operation Brock.

"The issue of what happens to traffic is actually deadly serious and I'm not making light of it but it is tempting for people who live in Dartford to say ‘welcome to our world’, because we don't need Brexit for us to be jammed up - it happens all the time in Dartford."

The contraflow system between Junctions 8 and 9 of the M20 will be operational from 6 am on Monday, October 28, despite the Brexit deadline certain to pass on Friday.

When Highways England introduced the restrictions earlier this year ahead of the original Brexit deadline of March 31, they triggered a wave of protests and complaints, particularly about the narrowness of the lanes used for the contra-flow.

Under the scheme, the coastbound side of the motorway between Junctions 8 and 9 will be used only by HGVs heading to Dover, with all other traffic restricted to a 50mph contraflow system on the London-bound carriageway.

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