Operation Stack turns M20 into lorry park and tailbacks stretch 20 MILES as Channel Tunnel travel chaos enters sixth day

• Cross-Channel travellers have faced disruption and delays since Saturday 
• Eurostar says passengers will experience delays of up to 60 minutes today
• Travellers are asked to check in at least 30 minutes before their departure 
• Freight and car passengers face further delays and tailbacks in Kent
• Residents are calling for an end to Operation Stack amid commuter chaos 
• Eurotunnel is 'working round the clock' to return to a full timetable

By Chris Kitching for MailOnline

Published: 04:48 EST, 22 January 2015 | Updated: 12:10 EST, 22 January 2015

Rail passengers between England and France and commuters in Kent are facing travel chaos for the sixth consecutive day amid ongoing power supply problems in the Channel Tunnel.

There are severe delays for freight and car passengers, who are trapped in worsening tailbacks stretching at least 20 miles on the M20 in Kent.

With just a single line working Eurostar is warning its customers that they will experience delays of up to an hour today while engineers try to restore service to full capacity.

There are further delays and tailbacks for freight and car passengers on the M20 in Kent

Eurotunnel said its service for freight and car passengers is operating with one departure every 90 minutes

Rail passengers should check in at least 30 minutes before their departure, said Eurostar

Kent Police are asking motorists to avoid the coastbound M20 today unless journeys are essential, as the queue of stranded lorries causes major delays for commuters.

The situation is causing tempers to flare in Kent, where residents are growing increasingly frustrated and calling for an end to Operation Stack, which sees lorries parked on the M20 when Channel Tunnel service is disrupted.

Ashford MP Damian Green told his Twitter followers he requested a meeting with the Transport Secretary to discuss concerns about Operation Stack.

He and fellow Kent MPs later met with Roads Minister John Hayes, and he said that the minister understands 'the scale and urgency' of the situation.

Meanwhile officials at Eurotunnel, the operator of the 31-mile Chunnel and the Le Shuttle passenger car and freight service, said they are working around the clock to return to a full timetable, saying it would be done ‘as soon as it’s safe’.

But the delays are expected to continue tomorrow.

Kent residents are growing increasingly frustrated with the delays associated with Operation Stack

Ashford MP Damian Green told his Twitter followers he requested a meeting with the Transport Secretary

A group of Kent MPs met with John Hayes, Minister of State at the Department for Transport

For rail passengers, Eurostar is operating a normal timetable.

A spokesman told MailOnline Travel: 'As a result of ongoing engineering works by Eurotunnel, and the continued closure of the North Tunnel, trains will continue to experience delays of 30 to 60 minutes.

‘Passengers should check in as normal, 30 minutes before departure, but should continue to check Eurostar.com for updates.’

As a result of the disruption Eurostar has modified tomorrow's timetable and cancelled four trains – one each on the London-Brussels and London-Paris routes, and one each on the Brussels-London and Paris-London routes.

Eurostar is warning passengers that they will experience delays of up to 60 minutes today

A power supply problem in the Channel Tunnel has caused disruption and delays all week 

Freight and car passengers are facing further delays and disruption with Eurotunnel's Le Shuttle service

Paris-based Eurotunnel said Le Shuttle is operating with one departure every 90 minutes on both sides. It normally operates up to four departures per hour. 

It has been a chaotic week for cross-Channel travellers, who have endured lengthy delays and disruption since the weekend.

Trains were cancelled and thousands of passengers were left stranded by a lorry fire on a train in the tunnel on Saturday.

More woes followed a day later as officials tried to resume full service.

On Sunday, a power supply problem saw 11 trains cancelled on the service as people tried to restart their journeys. That problem has persisted throughout the week.

Cross-Channel travellers have been caught up in significant delays and disruption this week

Kent residents said they are frustrated with Operation Stack as it causes severe delays for commuters

One Twitter user was forced to take the train to work as traffic congestion made it impossible to drive

In Kent, police said that phase two of Operation Stack, where lorries are queued on parts of the M20 to ease congestion leading to the Port of Dover, remains in place.

A police spokesman said: ‘Overnight and this morning further traffic has joined the M20, leading to congestion back to junction 6.’

Drivers planning journeys to work today were being urged by police to find other routes and to plan ahead if going to the coast.

In addition to causing traffic disruption, the situation is costing haulage firms massive amounts of money as lorries sit idle on the motorway.

Natalie Chapman, head of policy for the Freight Transport Association, told Kent Online that it costs £1 a minute to run an HGV, and there will be costs associated with spoiled products and lost contracts.

She said: ‘In this day and age we shouldn’t be having drivers parked up on the side of a motorway sat in their cabs with very little in the way of facilities.

‘It is cold, it’s not pleasant and I think we should be doing much better in the 21st century.’

Trains were cancelled and travellers were stranded after a lorry caught fire in the tunnel on Saturday

Dover District Council leader Paul Watkins lamented the lack of resilience to cope with a dramatic rise in traffic whenever there is congestion at the Chunnel or port.

He said: 'It is unacceptable that communities in east Kent are expected to bear the burden of what is a national issue.

'The UK economy relies on Dover and the Channel Tunnel to keep the nation's trade moving.

'Yet time after time we are left isolated and cut off by the lack of resilience in the road network and a lack of investment to support the nation's premier roll-on, roll-off port.'

He called on the government to develop a strategy on cross-Channel freight transport to manage problems "more proactively".

'Dover is as important to the national economy as Heathrow Airport,' he said. 'If Dover's not working, the nation isn't.'

Eurostar is facing a multi-million pound compensation bill after passengers were left stranded at the weekend

Eurotunnel spokesman John Keefe told BBC Radio Kent: ‘We are working round the clock and we will have it back as soon as it's safe to go into full operation.’ 

Bookings for all services have been closed down in the meantime, but people with existing bookings should still turn up, he added.

Mr Keefe said: ‘We have put in a batch system where we are running seven trains at a time through the one directional section.

‘That's giving us enough capacity to carry the passenger car traffic that we have got.

‘Unfortunately, at the moment there isn't enough capacity for all of the trucks. That's why Operation Stack is in place.’

Kent residents also complained about the public costs associated with Operation Stack, with police and firefighters positioned along the queue.

Meanwhile, the Port of Dover said there were no delays on ferry services.

But due to volume and the difficulties at the Channel Tunnel, traffic was queuing on approach roads to the port.

A port statement said: ‘The Port of Dover, together with its major ferry partners, will do all that it can to minimise any customer delays and community impact.

‘Customers are therefore advised to allow plenty of time for their journey and the community should consider using alternative local routes to move around the area where possible.’

The Channel Tunnel is the only land link between Britain and the European continent. It is used by passenger and freight trains, and conveys road vehicles by rail.

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