Written question asked by Lord Johnson of Marylebone (Conservative) on Thursday, 7 February 2019, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 11 February 2019. It was answered by Jesse Norman (Conservative) on Thursday, 14 February 2019 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

M20: Road Traffic Control

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking through Operation Brock to prepare for potential congestion around junctions 3, 4 and 5 of the M25 motorway as a result of disruption on the M20 and M26 in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Answer: The plans for Operation Brock have been designed to keep traffic flowing in both directions on the M20 in the event of disruption to freight and other transport across the Channel. It would also thereby alleviate traffic congestion across the neighbouring strategic and local road network. The deployment of the M26 to queue Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) temporarily will only be done in the unlikely event that capacity has been exceeded elsewhere under Brock contingency planning. The routes that HGVs will be directed to travel under Brock will be clearly signposted, and have been designed to minimise disruption on other roads, such as the M25, as much as possible.

Secondary information