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No quick fix for the A14
Page 30
Page 31
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The Suffolk police plan to stack goods vehicles
bound for Felixstowe on the A14 during
emergencies is causing consternation among those most affected. Chris Tindall reports.
There was a touch of anxiety about Chief Inspector Martin Barnes-Smith as he addressed the recent stakeholder meeting for Operation Stack, and with good reason.
The police-led operation to divest the A14 into Felixstowe of all goods vehicles bound for the port has not been enjoying much success lately. Inaccurate predictions about wind speeds; delays in erecting traffic management signs; motorists clogging up local villages as they attempt to beat the queues; and anger and confusion among LG V drivers who found themselves marooned on the A14 have all conspired to create problematic headlines.
Two things quickly became apparent at the meeting. One: there is no 'plan B' to the Suffolk police proposal to instill harmony on the roads when the port closes. And two: no matter what proposal is put forward, someone, somewhere will suffer.
As Barnes-Smith says: "Everyone is disadvantaged, so we will all need to take our proportion of the disruption."
Suffolk Police's plan, which is due to start in October, will retain the basic idea of Operation Stack, but shift it further out of Felixstowe and off the A14 in order to keep traffic flowing and businesses trading. To prevent a gumball rally race for the docks when it finally reopens, a ticketing system will be introduced so that there is an advantage to queuing stoically with hundreds of other drivers rather than opting for a nearby village green. Those with a voucher will eventually be allowed to enter the port; those without, won't.
"Under health and safety no longer can I permit my officers, or anyone else, to stack vehicles on a live dual carriageway," said Barnes-Smith. "That road needs to be closed properly. I have a responsibility to lorry drivers; a responsibility to anybody providing a service.
"Secondly, if there's an emergency with the stack, I need to get an emergency response to those people. We need to be able to deal with that and allow fire services to attend. You can't do that on an open road. And if the stack goes beyond four or five hours there needs to be facilities provided, like toilets. We can't do that on an open road."
Checking southern ports
Barnes-Smith visited Dover and Southampton ports to see how they deal with congestion and help formulate ideas for his own county.
One thing stood out for him: "The important thing is having compliance with everyone involved with stacking. If a lorry driver doesn't want to park where !want them to park and goes straight into Felixstowe, I can't control that and that will start taking apart any plan we have." He speaks from experience. An LGV driver was arrested recently after he refused to comply with an officer's request. Instead, said Barnes Smith, "he put his vehicle into first gear and drove at the traffic officer. We need to ensure there's an advantage given to a driver if they queue in a stack. If there isn't, those drivers won't stack.We already know that."
The force's proposal, which has yet to be finalised, is to divert container traffic off the A14 between Seven Hills and Nacton,10 miles outside Felixstowe. LGVs travelling to the port will be directed onto the old A45 near Levington. Barnes-Smith told the meeting that there is enough safe land at this site for parking. Tickets will be distributed and these must be presented when the port reopens to be allowed access. All other traffic bound for Felixstowe — but not the docks — freight or otherwise, will be allowed to continue on itsjourncy "From my point of view, the further out we take it the better," he added."We can't close the road near the Dockspur roundabout [in Felixstowe]. If [ shut that down I would close Felixstowe down. What we are looking to do is take Operation Stack away from Felixstowe to allow Felixstowe to go about its normal business.
"The downside is that traffic all comes up the Al2 and the A14. Beyond the A 12 we can't capture traffic corning up from London. We are a little snookered as to how far away from Felixstowe we can be."
Unsurprisingly, representatives from the village A Felixstowe docks: Problems can cause chaos on the A14 of Lev ington expressed their concern at the plan. Barnes-Smith tried to counter this by saying there would be officers in the vicinity to control the traffic and that everyone has to do their hit.
But councillor Andy Smith from Suffolk Coastal District Council suggested that spreading the load would be a better option. allowing trucks to park at various sites. He also warned that a ticketing system would have the opposite effect the police want; drivers with vouchers will race to the port,causing havoc.
Why neglect lorry parks?
Another issue raised by councillors is why places such as the Orwell Crossing Lorry Park on the A 14 can't be utilised to take up some of the strain. A spokesman for Felixstowe port said: "There's a degree of wishful thinking there. !Drivers] want to get as close to the port as possible. It would he nice if they did park up [ further back] but in reality it's not going to happen. I don't think it's practical to keep people further away because people won't obey."
The Felixstowe Port Users' Association, set up for companies that do business at the port, is cautious about the plans. Chairman Simon Fraser said:It's a step in the right direction.The police are responding to had experiences in the past.The last few incidents where they have had to put [Operation Stack] out has caused a lot of problems, not just to the haulage community, but also the locals."
A plan is just a plan, of course — BarnesSmith repeatedly warned the meeting that there are no guarantees.
"It may or may not work," he said. "I have to be realistic .They have to stack or they don't get into the port.That's my Utopia. All [want is officers on the ground looking after the confines of stacking people on the highway Not to debate, orfight, or anything else on the road.We expect reasonable behaviour from everyone." •