Kent police and Highways England are urging long distance lorry drivers to plan their journeys and rest breaks ahead, or face hefty fines if they park on the hard shoulder or motorway slip roads.
The warning came after 210 lorries were moved by Kent Police and Highways England officers for parking illegally and dangerously In the county between January 22nd and February 5
th 2016, with a further 117 HGV drivers were issued with fines.
Chief Inspector Vaghan Lukey, of Kent Police said on the rise of dangerous and illegal HGV parking “Our message is simple; long distance drivers should plan their journeys and factor in rest breaks at safe and legal locations.”
“If you park on the hard shoulder or slip road for a break, we will catch you and we will move you on, and in the most serious cases, we will issue a fine up to £1,000”
In January, HGV driver Mark Lindridge hit back at criticism of Lorry’s parking illegally overnight on hard shoulders and slips roads arguing that people need to consider the service HGV’s are providing to the economy, and have more sympathy for truckers unable to find spaces in designated parking areas.
HGV Driver Mark Lindridge says more needs to be done to accomadate drivers and lorries at rest stops
“Drivers hate parking at places like that on the side of the road, but sometimes you have no choice”, Mr Lindridge continued “our tacographs are monitored daily and if we have any infringements we could lose our jobs.”
Whilst many have supported Kent Police and Highways England’s clampdown on HGV drivers breaking road parking laws, many others have said the problem with lack of suitable parking needs to be tackled.