Operation Stack - March 2008

March 2008

On 5 March 2008 continuing industrial action (which had begun in late February) by French workers operating the SeaFrance cross-channel ferry service resulted in Kent Police initiating phase 2 of Operation Stack to manage a freight traffic build-up as a result of delayed ferry services. The industrial action lasted for a number of days with the subsequent backlog of road freight on the M20 causing significant disruption to the surrounding area and roads. The MEP for South East England, Richard Ashworth, and the leader of Kent County Council, Paul Carter, urged French president Nicolas Sarkozy to step-in and resolve the SeaFrance dispute, protesting the difficulties incurred by the county's residents and businesses. The long-term nature of the closures was the first time in the 20-year-history of Operation Stack that sections of the M20 had had to be closed for more than three days; businesses in nearby towns reported trade and takings down by up to 50%. As of 13 March, Stack was still operational – the longest single time it has ever been in operation. The Freight Transport Association estimated the cost of the disruption to be around £5 m as at 9 March. Kent County Council later announced progress with their plans to construct a lorry freight park which would be used for temporary parking in an attempt to mitigate the effects of Operation Stack. This has met with opposition from the borough councilor for Saxon Shore ward where the rest stop would be sited; he accused the County council of "not thinking strategically", not considering the environmental impact properly, and of siting the facility too close to a National Grid facility where he expects the fuel in vehicles to be a danger to a "facility of strategic national importance".