The government plans to tackle congestion by increasing Dartford-Thurrock Crossing charges.

Plans to tackle congestion at the Dartford-Thurrock Crossing and invest in major improvements have taken an important step forward as Roads Minister Mike Penning recently launched a consultation into proposed charge increases.

The Minister also confirmed that on 1 July, 2011 the Highways Agency started a six month trial of revised operational arrangements for suspending Dartford Crossing charges to help traffic flow when an emergency has created particularly severe congestion.

The government is clear that reducing congestion at this vital transport link for the UK economy is an absolute priority.  To allow for the investment this needs, the government announced in last year's spending review that it intends to increase Dartford charges this year and next. A consultation has recently been launched into the proposed increases.

Mike Penning said: “The Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing is a vital piece of transport infrastructure that has brought huge economic benefits and opportunities to the country. But the simple fact is many more motorists want to use the crossing than it was designed for and this leads to frequent lengthy delays, frustration and damage to the economy.  Unless urgent action is taken, this situation will only get worse with traffic expected to increase. That is unacceptable.”

He continued: "It is clear that in the absence of the proposed increased revenues, we would not have been able to prioritise improvements which will benefit millions of road users. We are committed to introducing free flow charging to reduce congestion and explore provision of new additional crossing capacity. I also understand how frustrating it is when an emergency incident causes major delays around the crossing. That is why the Highways Agency will trial new operational guidelines for suspending charges to help traffic flow when congestion is particularly severe."

Subject to consultation, the proposal is that cash payments would increase for cars from £1.50 to £2.00 in late 2011 and to £2.50 in spring 2012. For 2-axle goods vehicles cash payments would increase from £2.00 to £2.50 in late 2011 and to £3.00 in spring 2012. For heavy goods vehicles they would increase from £3.70 to £5.00 in late 2011 and to £6.00 in spring 2012.

The government recognises the important role of pre-payment in bringing about shorter transaction times and therefore intends maintaining the existing levels of discount for those paying in advance using the Dart-Tag system.

The local residents’ discount scheme will also be retained with no changes to the levels of charges.   

The revised operational arrangements for the suspension of charges will allow charges to be suspended in one or both directions, on a case by case basis, at times of defined levels of severe congestion.  During the trial, drivers will not be charged to use the crossing if it is assessed that the suspension of the charge would help relieve the build-up of queues and congestion caused by an emergency situation.

The public consultation will run until Friday 23 September, 2011 and is accessible at www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/dft-2011-08