It is estimated that the operation is costing Kent economy £1.5million a day

It used to be a quiet corner of Kent, but not even the tranquil village of Sellindge on the North Downs is immune from the chaos engulfing Calais.

Operation Stack, an emergency police plan, has seen sections of the M20 turned into a lorry park whenever the situation in the French town spirals out of control.

The aim is to stagger the flow of trucks entering the Dover port or the Channel Tunnel terminal, but for those in Sellindge and the other villages around Ashford, it is making their lives a misery.

Operation Stack, an emergency police plan, has seen sections of the M20 in Kent turned into a lorry park whenever the situation in the French town of Calais spirals out of control. Lorries pictured queuing this week

Alison Lang, 48, who works at the Duke’s Head pub in the village of Sellindge, said it had been ‘a nightmare’ since the operation began, with hundreds of lorry drivers needing the toilet after being stuck on the motorway

Such is the traffic gridlock, that residents have effectively been confined to their homes – in some cases even missing vital hospital appointments.

Meanwhile, local businesses have been hit as the blocked roads keep regular customers away. This is not to mention the disruption caused by the arrival of thousands of lorry drivers.

It has been estimated that the operation, which has been in place on 21 days in the past three months, has already cost the Kent economy in the region of £31.5million pounds so far this year – £1.5million a day.

In Sellindge, which lies just off the M20, daily life has become a struggle for the residents and businesses now living with the fallout of the Calais farce.

Alison Lang, 48, who works at the Duke’s Head pub in the village and lives in Ashford said it had been ‘a nightmare’ since the operation began.

She said the pub had been besieged by hundreds of lorry drivers and holidaymakers needing the toilet after being stuck on the motorway for hours.

‘The car park is full of caravans and camper vans and they all come in to use the toilet and then leave again,’ she said. ‘No one can make their reservations because of the traffic so they keep cancelling.

‘But you can’t blame people. It’s not their fault. I just hope they sort things out soon. We had a coach-load of elderly people stuck here the other day as the driver had done too many miles and had to break, but we had nowhere to put them. It’s very sad.’

The pub’s owner, Mandy Moore, 48, added: ‘We’ve had people who had booked tables for lunch and dinner who simply couldn’t get here because of the traffic.

‘Others were turning up over an hour late because of the problem.

It has been estimated that the Operation Stack, which has been in place on 21 days in the past three months, has already cost the Kent economy in the region of £31.5million pounds so far this year – £1.5million a day

Kevin Dryland, 55 (right), who owns the Potten Farm Shop in Sellindge on the North Downs, which includes a pet shop, said his business was ‘really suffering’ while Graham Balcomb, 46 (left), who manages the Co-op store and post office in the village, said they had benefited from the thousands of extra customers passing by

‘People are missing hospital and doctors’ appointments and what concerns me is the emergency services. If someone needed urgent medical attention or if there was a fire, I dread to think what could happen.’

Kevin Dryland, 55, who owns the Potten Farm Shop in the village, which includes a pet shop, said his business was ‘really suffering’ and his takings had halved as a result of the traffic jams.

‘On Saturday, there was a three-hour delay in the village and the queue went right back to the slip road,’ he said. ‘We had the quietest day we’ve ever had as our customers couldn’t get to us.

‘The pet shop usually has around 70 customers on a Saturday but they had 17 last week. We would normally see about 200 customers but we saw nothing like that and our takings were half what they usually are.

‘Something needs to be done about this. It’s been like this for the last three weeks. The French government needs to act now.’

Farmer Richard Price, 60, said Operation Stack has disrupted harvesting of his crops because of the gridlocked traffic.

‘I have a combine harvester sitting in the field, which was expensive to buy and operate, sitting idle for long periods of time because of the delays in getting the crops back to the grain store at the farm,’ he said. ‘It is delaying the harvest.’

But Graham Balcomb, 46, who manages the Co-op store and post office in the village said they had benefited from the thousands of extra customers, adding: ‘There have been endless queues outside so we have a captive audience.

Kent businesses have suffered as the blocked roads keep regular customers away, not to mention the disruption caused by the arrival of thousands of lorry drivers. Pictured: Recent queues on the M20, Kent

‘I can’t say it’s all been doom and gloom. Also, the locals are coming to us rather than driving to Tesco.’

Alan Dixon, 63, who runs Charing Stores near Ashford, said: ‘We get extremely heavy traffic through the village which is brought to a complete halt where it piles up so much. Lorry drivers were walking in all directions looking to buy food and water.’

Residents also spoke of how difficult their day-to-day lives had been made by the operation.

Caroline Ealham, 57, who works at the doctors’ surgery in Sellindge, said: ‘You feel like a prisoner in your own home. Something needs to be done about it. On Friday a pothole appeared in the road because there has been so much traffic using it.

‘About 12 cars suffered punctures. A few cars had double punctures which added to the congestion. A friend of mine took over an hour to drive 200 metres.’

Francesca Murphy, 39, an osteopath in Hollingbourne, Maidstone, near junction eight of the M20, said patients could not get to their appointments. She added: ‘I’m losing money and losing business.’

A meeting was held at Kent County Council last week to discuss alternatives to Operation Stack. The operation was lifted on Sunday, but there were fears it could return in coming days.

Matthew Balfour, the council’s cabinet member for transport, said the chaos was costing Kent’s economy around £1.5million a day.

‘All the roads in east Kent get completely blocked up so people can’t go to the shops, they can’t get to the doctor, the hospital,’ he said. ‘They can’t pick up their children, queues are endless and it’s really insufferable … people who run shops in the towns and the villages don’t get their trade because people stay at home.’