Operation Brock expected 'more frequently' in Kent with new border checks next month

Operation Brock – the hated M20 traffic management plan – is expected to be used more frequently when new cross-Channel border checks come into effect next month. However, transport experts say earlier fears of "14-hour delays" at Kent's ports have been revised down to only a "minimal increase" on current levels.

Operation Brock creates a contraflow system on the M20, filtering port-bound HGVs and other freight onto the coastbound stretch. All other traffic is filtered onto the regular London-bound side with a temporary barrier dividing the carriageway and a 50mph speed limit enforced.

The scheme comes into use especially at times of high tourist traffic to the Port of Dover and the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone. The European Union has long been planning a new Entry/Exit System (EES) for