There are 632 lorries on the M20 motorway – a key gateway to the continent for freight trucks traveling in and out of the UK – and 2,188 lorries in the Manston Airport carpark, the press officer said.
On Monday, the UK enacted "Operation Brock" in a bid to keep traffic moving on the M20 during periods of cross-Channel disruption. The motorway barrier system was designed to deal with potential traffic disruption at the end of the Brexit transition period.
Lorries arriving in Kent en route to the port of Dover or the Eurotunnel are being diverted to Manston Airport to park.
The operation involves using a contraflow road layout on the M20 London-bound carriageway between junctions 9 and 8 (from Ashford to Maidstone) and directing lorries heading for mainland Europe onto the coastbound carriageway, where they can be queued if necessary.
Hauliers have been advised to avoid traveling to Kent as disruption could last for several days.