Delivering for Dover

The site’s owners believe the project offers the residents of Dover and surrounding communities a number of benefits.

Traffic management

Congestion is a recurring problem for Dover residents and businesses, bringing traffic to a halt in the town with disruption frequently spreading to surrounding communities such as Aycliffe, Capel, Hawkinge and Cheriton as well as Folkestone. This proposed lorry park has the potential to provide a location where lorries can stay overnight and remain until congestion eases – with only a short travel time to the Port.

Taking lorries off the road will also include less risk of the closure of the Roundhill Tunnel, less pollution/noise from idling HGVs and less rubbish left by drivers at the side of the road.

Environmental enhancements

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Some two-thirds of the site will either be untouched or used for habitat enhancement, resulting in a substantial uplift in biodiversity.

Native broadleaved woodland is proposed to enhance existing woodland along the northern boundary and within the south and east of the site. Existing field hedges will be extended along the south side of the footpath within the north of the site and along the southern boundary.

Grassland habitats are proposed across the site to provide additional environmental enhancements, while scrub habitat, extension of existing hedge, and native broadleaved woodland is proposed alongside the proposed access from the A20 slip road.

The development will incorporate sustainable drainage systems with a new swale on the western edge of the lorry park taking – and cleaning – run-off rainwater to a shallow grassed basin in the north-east of the site, which will hold the water while it sinks into the ground.

Over

33,000m2

of new scrub habitat

Minimum of

10%

biodiversity net gain

Deliver Approx

7,000m2

of additional native field hedges

More than

73,000m2

of new woodland areas

Circa

48,000m

of new wildflower grassland delivered

Reducing crime through location and design

One result of HGVs being parked in insecure locations is that it prompts opportunistic crime. Statistics from the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS) say there were 242 incidents involving HGV crime in Kent in 2024. The organisation states: “Our position is quite clear that the UK needs to adopt more secure truck parking in order to have any significant reduction in Freight Crime offences.”

Freight crime is estimated to cost the UK economy £680-£700 million a year. Just 0.4% of thefts occur in secure truck stops compared to 32% at motorway service stations, and 43% on independent road parking.

To design out crime, the Court Wood truckstop would incorporate:

  • ·A strong perimeter fence with a 24hr manned security gatehouse

  • CCTV to provide a robust deterrent and appropriate lighting

Meeting industry standards for safe and secure parking

The Ashford International Truckstop has achieved the Police Crime Prevention Initiative’s (CPI) Park Mark Freight standard. It was specifically developed for lorry parks and truck stops in response to the rise in cargo theft in recent years and the Department for Transport's policies for improving roadside facilities for drivers. GSE is committed to achieving the standard at Capel.

Creating new jobs

Building the proposed lorry park would represent a £50 million investment in Dover’s rural economy, generating 100 new jobs and further indirect ones in the facility’s supply chain. Once operational it would contribute a substantial sum in business rates to the district council every year.

Protecting public rights of way

The route of the public footpath that runs through the site from Gravel Lane to the A20 would be outside the perimeter fence so would not be directly affected. To one side the footpath would be screened from the lorry parking by existing and new hedgerows, on the other side new native woodland would be planted

Supporting HGV driver wellbeing

The life of an HGV driver can be a difficult one. Trucking Lives’ Views From the Cab Report 2024, funded by UKRI’s Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), found that 54% of current HGV drivers reported that their job had negative impacts on their physical health and 32% felt it was detrimental to their mental health.

According to National Highways, driver welfare is a national priority. Providing high quality truck stop facilities is key to improving driver wellbeing.

Improving driver facilities will generate wider socio-economic benefits, including better road safety and reduced pressures on the NHS. While driver fatigue is linked to up to 20% of road incidents, a 2023 Randstad survey found 27% of logistics workers had taken time off due to unmanageable stress or mental health issues.

Supporting the efforts to reduce the impact of Operation TAP

In place for more than a decade, Operation TAP has had a negative impact on the economy and community of Dover despite the considerable efforts to find a solution.

In the words of the Kent Resilience Forum: “Dover TAP and Operation Brock remain exceptionally disruptive both locally and nationally. They are limited in their capacity, remain resource intense and are a sub-optimal on-road solution.”

The project welcomes the efforts of the Dover Harbour Board to improve the resilience of the outbound management of HGVs through the Port and to keep this nationally significant trade route between the UK and mainland Europe flowing freely.

By providing an additional 600 HGV spaces between Folkestone and Dover, the proposed truckstop will add a significant level of capacity and strengthen the Port’s resilience.

Freeing the area of traffic offers the prospect of unlocking Dover’s potential and strengthening its economy.