Countless cases of damage to historic listed buildings in Sandwich have prompted MP Craig Mackinlay to secure a parliamentary debate on the issue of inappropriate use of sat navs by HGVs.

With the proliferation of free software for smartphones, and the low cost of portable sat navs, geared up solely for car use, the temptation has been for HGV operators, particularly foreign drivers, to use these cheaper alternatives.

With foreign lorries entering the UK via the Channel ports and tunnel, there is a higher volume of such lorries on Kent roads than anywhere else in the UK.

In the 90 minute Westminster debate, Mr Mackinlay highlighted the changes to the GPS sat nav market and the many cases of damage to historic listed buildings in Sandwich, particularly around Breezy Corner and The Barbican, with 40 tonne HGVs regularly causing damaging blockages to the town.

The A257 between Sandwich and Canterbury has similar problems and is a regular complaint of the A257 advisory group.

The UK’s Freight Transport Association has been at the forefront of advising its 15,000 members to purchase HGV quality sat navs and advises its members of appropriate routes to take.

Transport Minister Claire Perry welcomed Mr Mackinlay’s proposals for manufacturers to voluntarily introduce a ‘lorry feature’ as standard on all devices and within all software.

She announced a nation-wide £3 million Ordnance Survey digital mapping project, with widths, heights and other road features, at high resolution, being made available as free data to all digital mapping companies to enhance the quality of base maps used within devices.

Mr Mackinlay said: “Inappropriate sat navs cause physical, economic and potential danger when used by HGVs.

“I am encouraged that Ordnance Survey is spending £3 million on open source mapping, which could be vital to further improving the quality of data available to mapping companies.

“It is my hope that mapping companies will make full use of this information and use this data to support a lorry-specific option on sat navs which would solve, at a stroke, a number of the main problems.

“Additionally, I have been encouraging Kent County Council to provide maps for free at ports of entry, which clearly highlight the strategic road routes that should be used, and clearly mark the towns and villages that should be avoided.

“These steps taken together with the work of the Sandwich Traffic Summits could see an end to the madness of HGVs in the historic town centre.”