Dartford Crossing charges: How much extra will drivers be charged to use tunnel, when will charge come in - who owns Dartford Crossing

Currently, the majority of motorists must pay £2.50 if they wish to make use of either the QE2 bridge or the Dartford Tunnel if they are travelling clockwise or anti-clockwise on the M25 respectively. However, the charge for cars is set to increase by £1 (40 per cent) in September to £3.50 per crossing; those with a DART account will see charges increase by 80 pence from £2 to £2.80.

Motorcyclists making use of the crossing still won’t have to pay the charge, but two-axled buses, coaches and HGVs will see prices increase to £4.20 (£3.60 for DART account holders) and those with more than two axles will, from September, have to pay £8.40 (£7.20 if you have a DART account). Local residents can pay £25 per year for unlimited crossings, up from £20 annually.

In a statement, Transport Secretary Lillian Greenwood said that she is “aware that these necessary changes to the charges will be unwelcome news for users of the crossing”. She said: “In the 11 years since, demand at the crossing has grown 7.5%, with the crossing now used by an average of over 150,000 vehicles every day and up to 180,000 vehicles on the busiest days.

“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. 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 LTC, for which the government confirmed new funding yesterday, will provide.”

The new charge will come into effect on 1 September, with the government keen to remind drivers that the increase is still below inflationary levels between now and when toll booths were removed in 2014.

Who owns the Dartford Crossing?

The Dartford Crossing is owned by the UK government and managed by National Highways (formerly Highways England) on behalf of the Department for Transport. While a private company, Connect Plus, operates and maintains the crossing, it does so under contract with National Highways. The Dart Charge, the system for collecting the crossing fee, is managed by a private company, although National Highways is responsible for it