The owner of Sandwich Leisure Holiday Park claims parked cars are blocking deliveries and causing traffic chaos for motorists.

On Friday, a large mobile home was being delivered to the park, but it ended up blocking St Bart’s Road due to an abandoned white van.

Alan Smith, owner of the holiday park in Woodnesborough Road, claims the van was left in a place which meant the wide load could not pass.

This meant that hundreds of cars and buses on their way to Sandwich Technology School were stuck in the road.

He said: “It has become impossible. It means buses and cars had to reverse back up to the school which is awkward and dangerous to say the least. Someone’s going to get hurt or killed.”

Many parents abandoned their cars in the middle of the road in order to pick their children up from school, while others were forced to reverse on the busy street.

The delivery route is planned by Kent Police as the mobile home is classed as an abnormal wide load.

Mr Smith explained that previously officers would escort these loads into the park but a lack of police presence in the town is making it much more difficult.

He added: “It’s a ridiculous situation.

“Kent Police decide the route we take to cause minimal disruption but then when we get in trouble we are on our own.”

Mr Smith called police at 2.15pm and asked for assistance.

Two officers arrived at around 4pm but explained that as the van was not parked illegally (on double yellow lines) there was nothing they could do – despite being told the van was abandoned two weeks before.

He says there was one police car covering Dover, Deal and Sandwich that day and this is not enough.

He also explained that ordinary lorries struggle to get through when cars park on the road - but there is no other route into Sandwich due to the weight restrictions.

Residents on St Bart’s Road have been calling for double yellow lines near the junction with Dover Road for more than 20 years to stop motorists parking there and then going to London on the train.

"Someone’s going to get hurt or killed.” - Alan Smith.

Now the park has been granted planning permission for 78 mobile homes and although this is good news, Mr Smith is concerned about deliveries.

He plans to write to Kent Police, Sandwich Town Council and KCC Highways to appeal for help and call for double yellow lines on St Bart’s Road.

A spokesman for Kent Police said there is no record that the van was parked illegally and an attempt was made to locate the owner but this failed.

The spokesman added: “We asked if it was likely to cause a collision or obstruction but was told it would not.

“Police officers arrived on the scene for traffic control but it wasn’t needed.”