The leader of Kent CC has called for her county to see a share of the Dartford Crossing income after the Government announced plans to increase the tolls from this September.
Cllr Linden Kemkaran wrote to roads minister Lilian Greenwood outlining a request for a share of the profits due to the impact on Kent being 'so great'.
'There is a strong argument that KCC, as the Highways authority for Kent, should be passported a proportion of [the profits] each year to aid the upkeep of the road network,’ she said.
The newly elected Reform UK council leader continued by adding that ‘the crossing is not on the cusp of losing money’, given that cash receipts were £221.6m for 2023-24, with operating costs of £134.9m leaving a net profit of £86.7m.
Ms Kemkaran argued that ‘there is no reasonable alternative route’ for Kent residents making the journey northwards from Dartford.
She said that the only other option would be to drive through Greater London and incur further charges from the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) and the use of the Blackwall or Silvertown tunnels, both of which now charge.
Updated fees
The fee for cars using the crossing is expected to increase by 40% from £2.50 to £3.50 – although there will be a discount of 70p for drivers who pre-pay.
While there will still be no charge for motorcycles and other similar vehicles, the rest of the charges will increase from 1 September 2025 as listed below:
- Cars (including trailers), motorhomes, and any minibuses that have nine or fewer seats (including the driver’s seat): one-off charge of £3.50 and £2.80 when pre-paid
- Buses, coaches, vans, and other goods vehicles with two axles: one-off charge of £4.20 and £3.60 when pre-paid
- Buses, coaches, vans, and other goods vehicles with more than two axles: one-off charge of £8.40 and £7.20 when pre-paid.
Announcing the changes, Ms Greenwood said: ‘To secure the effective operation of the crossing, I have, therefore, decided to increase the charges for all vehicle types that currently pay to use the crossing from 1 September 2025.'
She added that she was ‘aware that these necessary changes to the charges will be unwelcome news for users of the crossing,’ but that the Government will ‘continue to support local people’ through the resident discount scheme.
Despite the minister expressing a desire to ‘keep the nominal fee paid by local people as low as possible’, there will also be a 25% increase to the annual fee from £20 to £25 per year.
Image credit: Shutterstock @Alexey Fedorenko
