Kent County Council have greed a £180,000 six-month contract with disaster charity RE:ACT Disaster Response to assist stuck lorry drivers waiting to board ferries and Eurotunnel shuttles.
The charity was brought in as the council warned pandemic lockdowns had masked the true problems of hold-ups caused by Brexit – with up to 50 days of gridlock now expected every year on motorways leading to Dover.
The Post-Brexit Dover lorry queues are now so bad the council said it had a “duty to provide humanitarian assistance to those in need under certain circumstances”, although may argue that the delays are caused by issues at French ports combined with the ongoing ferry shortage.
The build-up of untreated sewage along the roads is going to become a serious health hazard
It means truckers stuck for hours on the M20 and M2 without access to toilets, food or drink will now get some help.
The charity says it “specialises in complex emergencies and crises, deploying highly trained RE:ACT Response Teams in the field”.
But a Road Hauliers Association spokesman said: “How will this work? We have seen lengthy queues but traffic has continued to move, albeit very slowly. It can be dangerous if the charity intends to approach drivers in their cabs. For this reason, it isn’t possible to even erect temporary toilets on the hard shoulder.”
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has yet to comment on the human right issues on Kent’s motorways.