Manston lorry park to shut down in June as planned

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The lorry park on the site of Kent’s Manston Airport will not be used once its lease has expired at the end of June this year.

According to Kent Online, a Department for Transport (Dft) spokesperson confirmed the decision, saying “The government secured use of the Manston Airport site as a temporary measure to manage traffic at the border from 1 January 2021 to the end of June 2021.”

The plan is for lorries to be directed towards the Ashford lorry park and customs facility, even if the site does not offer the same capacity as Manston.

It is said that officials believe the chances of an event causing significant disruption are low, and now that the flow of traffic is almost at pre-Brexit levels, Manston will not be required longer than planned.

However, a spokesperson for Kent County Council has expressed concerns about the loss of Manston:

The DfT currently have no plans to extend the lease of the Manston site which will leave Kent without the necessary infrastructure to respond to large scale congestion. The deployment of all stages of Op Stack is compromised by the inclusion of the Sevington site.

Back in December, the lorry park was of course full to the brim as a result of France temporarily closing its borders to accompanied freight. Since then, it has partly been used as a coronavirus testing point.

Last month, Manson hit the headlines again due to a leaked letter that alleged lorry drivers presented forged covid test papers. The letter also stated lorry park staff had been accused of offering drugs and having sex while on the job.

Moreover, it has been revealed that the lease of Manston Airport has cost the UK Government over 6 million pounds.


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