Dartford Crossing charge to increase to £3.50 as of September

The standard charge for car drivers using the Dartford Crossing will rise from £2.50 to £3.50 in September.

The crossing links the M25 in Essex and Kent.

Motorists were first charged to use the bridge and tunnel in 2003 and the charge was last increased in 2014.

Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood, in a statement to Parliament, said the road was used by as many as 180,000 vehicles each day and the current charge was “no longer sufficient” to manage the demand.

Greenwood said there would be “significant” discounts for residents. Car drivers with pre-pay accounts would pay £2.80 per crossing.

People driving buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles with two axles would pay up to £4.20.

Vehicles with more than two axles will be charged up to £8.40.

Greenwood said the new charges were “significantly lower” than if they had increased in line with inflation since 2014.

“I am aware that these necessary changes to the charges will be unwelcome news for users of the crossing,” she said.

“These traffic levels are well in excess of the crossing’s design capacity, causing delays for drivers using the crossing, congestion and journey disruption to drivers on the M25, and a range of knock-on impacts for local communities.”

This week, it was announced that the Treasury would give £590m to the Lower Thames Crossing – a new tunnel under the estuary – which would link Tilbury in Essex and Gravesend in Kent.

National Highways hopes the new road will reduce traffic at the Dartford Crossing by 20%.