Kent’s roads chief examines the Dartford Crossing from the Thames

19 January 2012

Kent County Council Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Waste, Bryan Sweetland, this week took the opportunity to look at possible route options for an additional Thames crossing, ahead of a meeting with the Roads Minister.

The trip on the River Thames came before a meeting between Bryan Sweetland and Transport Minister Mike Penning MP on 7 February, where they will discuss a new crossing – seen as vital to relieving one of the country’s busiest roads.

Bryan Sweetland said: "It is clear we need an urgent solution to the increasing congestion problems at the Dartford crossing. I will be saying to Mike Penning, the Roads Minister that we will be looking for a solution that can be constructed within five years.

“Kent County Council is not beholden to any particular route option for an additional Thames crossing and the final decision on the definitive route rests with the Government. However, we will be working with the Department for Transport and Essex County Council to ensure that whatever route option is eventually chosen, it will act as a catalyst for economic growth, bringing new jobs to the Thames Gateway. Importantly though, any new route option must cause the least amount of environmental damage to our precious Kent countryside.

"Both Dartford and Gravesham have recently featured high in the Child Poverty league table (one in five of Gravesham's children lives in poverty) and in Gravesham, eleven people are now chasing every job that is created. It is clear that wherever the new crossing is built, much needed economic growth and jobs will follow in North Kent.”
 
Kent and Essex are taking a fresh look at the route options and have jointly commissioned two important reports – an Economic Growth Assessment and an Environmental Impact Assessment – that will look again at all three options.

The government is due to consult on crossing options in 2013. Kent County Council has secured a place on the Department for Transport’s Stakeholder Advisory Panel, which will look at the possible options.