The Government should do more to invest in the road infrastructure to Britain’s most important port, council leader says.
After a weekend that saw a lot of disruption for cross-Channel travellers, the leader of Dover District Council has urged Whitehall to invest more in ‘Britain's major gateway with Europe.’
Cllr Paul Watkins said: ‘This weekend's chaos is a wake-up call to Government to invest in the road infrastructure to Britain's major gateway with Europe. Dover is the continent's busiest passenger port, and a vital link to trade for British businesses.’
The councillor accused ‘successive governments’ of failing to invest in the infrastructure that ‘links Dover to the national and international road network’.
He also called for extra investment to be directed into ‘smart’ technologies.
‘There also needs to be substantial investment in 'smart' technology on the road network to provide real-time information on cross-Channel services, and to support a variable speed limit system for a permanent Dover Traffic Access Protocol (TAP),’ Cllr Watkins said.
‘This is not just a local issue. As well as impacting local residents, the Government's failure to invest in the road infrastructure to the UK's premier roll-on/roll-off port is directly impacting the national economy,’ he added.
Image: S Kozakiewicz / Shutterstock.com.
