Businesses criticise Dartford Crossing price rise

The cost of using the Dartford Crossing has increased by 40% for motorists who do not live nearby or have a pre-paid account

An airport transfers business owner and a haulier warned a 40% increase in Dartford Crossing charges would have to be passed on to their customers.

They have risen for the first time in 11 years, from £2.50 to £3.50 for car drivers who do not live nearby or have a pre-paid account, and up to £8.40 for larger vehicles.

The crossing, which connects the M25 in Essex and Kent, is used by an average of about 150,000 vehicles each day, 7.5% higher than when tollbooths were removed in 2014.

The Department for Transport (DfT) said the previous charges were "no longer sufficient" to manage demand.

Some regular users of the crossing said they believed the price rise would make little difference to traffic congestion.

Neil Godfrey, owner of the Clacton-based East Anglian Airport Transfers, was "not very impressed at all".

He said: "It will have a knock-on effect and we will have to put our rates up, which is not good for business because our customers will have to pay for it.

"Traffic isn't going to reduce by putting the rate up, because people will still pay it. I would accept an extra 50p but 40% is an extraordinary amount."

The Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which makes up part of the Dartford Crossing and opened in 1991

Rob Foulger, who transports food to supermarkets, told BBC Essex he had already been paying about £12,000 a month to use the crossing before the increase.

"It's going to work out a lot of money and the charge will get passed on to major supermarkets and then ultimately on to the consumer," he warned.

"Does this mean, now that it has gone up, there isn't going to be all those queues at the tunnels? It's not going to stop anyone, because they are still going to use it."

Discounts are offered to drivers who live in the area and people who have a pre-paid account.

One-off payments for cars will cost £3.50, but this is reduced to £2.80 if paid in advance using an account. For lorries, the charge drops to £7.20.

A DfT spokesperson said current traffic levels were "well in excess" of the crossing's design capacity, causing congestion and disruption.

It added: "Current charging levels are no longer sufficient to achieve their stated aim of managing demand so that the crossing works well for users and local people.

"The need to increase the charges to manage traffic highlights the need for the additional capacity that the Lower Thames Crossing, for which the government confirmed new funding yesterday, will provide."