Highways England is proposing a new road and tunnel, the A122 Lower Thames Crossing.

It would connect to the A2 and M2 in Kent, passing through a tunnel under the River Thames, before linking to the A13 in Thurrock then linking with a new junction on the M25 south of junction 29 in the London Borough of Havering, north of the Thames.

Most of the road would be three lanes in both directions. It would use technology for incident detection, lane control and variable speed limits. The southbound connection from the M25 to the junction with the A13/A1089 would be two lanes, as would link roads and stretches of the carriageway through junctions.

Legacy and benefits

The new crossing would reduce congestion at the Dartford Crossing, support economic growth locally, regionally and nationally, and make space for more reliable journeys across the River Thames.

These benefits include:

• bringing people closer to jobs and businesses closer to their customers and suppliers
• involving 22,000 people with the project during construction, including hundreds of apprentices and graduates
• offering free training for businesses to give them the skills needed to work on this project, and the many schemes in this area and across the UK
• enhancing habitats for wildlife
• creating a network of green spaces that leave a lasting legacy for local communities
• two new landscaped parks, one each side of the river by our tunnel entrances, giving local communities panoramic views of the Thames
• replanting six square metres of new woodland for every square metre of ancient woodland lost
• creating 46km of new, realigned or improved footpaths, cycleways and bridleways
• building seven, new green bridges that would connect new pathways

The Lower Thames Crossing is the UK’s most ambitious roads project for more than 30 years and part of the largest investment in our strategic road network in a generation.

By almost doubling road capacity across the Thames east of London and easing congestion on the Dartford Crossing every year, the new road would improve journeys for millions of people every year.

It would also play a vital role in our nation’s economic recovery, connecting residents to jobs, and businesses to customers.

Leaving a lasting legacy

We understand that building a major piece of infrastructure will have an impact on those living nearby but Highways England is committed to leaving a positive legacy.

• Better access to existing jobs for Gravesham, Thurrock and Havering as improved journey times would bring over 400,000 more jobs within a 60-minute commute, when the new crossing is open for traffic.
• 80% of the new road would now be in a cutting, false cutting or tunnel to reduce its visual impact.
• Two new public parks would be created:
  – Chalk Park, a 38-hectare park near Gravesend
  – Tilbury Fields, a 48-hectare park overlooking the Thames in Thurrock.
• We would remove the need for over 470,000 HGV movements on local roads by beneficially reusing excavated material in the parks.
• We are replanting over 260 hectares of new woodland – six times more trees than the number lost. In addition, we’re creating a new 100-hectare community woodland in partnership with Forestry England, near Great Warley in Brentwood.
• There would be 46km of new, realigned or improved footpaths, cycleways and bridleways.
• Seven new green bridges would connect footpaths, bridleways and ecological habitats.
• New and improved habitats for wildlife would include 120% more hedgerows, 40% more ponds and 10% more ditches.
• Reduced congestion at the Dartford Crossing and approach roads would improve local air quality.

The Lower Thames Crossing would provide a number of other benefits to local communities, including:

• supporting jobs for 22,000 people, including hundreds of apprentices and graduates during construction
• bringing businesses closer to their customers and suppliers
• upskilling local businesses with free training to give them the skills needed to work on this and other projects
• working with local schools and colleges to inspire a new generation of engineers

Did you know?

We will explore new ways of building roads in a low carbon future. We will also enhance habitats for wildlife, increase biodiversity and improve air quality to leave the local community and environment better off than when we arrived.

We have worked with the Department for Transport to set objectives for the new road to:

• support sustainable local development and regional economic growth in the medium to long term
• be affordable to government and users
• achieve value for money
• minimise adverse impacts on health and the environment
• relieve the congested Dartford Crossing and approach roads, and improve their performance by providing free-flowing, north-south capacity
• improve resilience of the Thames crossings and the major road network
• improve safety

All projects of the type and scale of the Lower Thames Crossing are Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs). This means we need permission to build and operate the new road through a Development Consent Order (DCO).

We would need to move utilities to avoid the new route. Four of these diversions (three underground gas pipelines and one overhead electricity line) are NSIPs in their own right and will form part of our DCO application.

The project has been shaped by the most comprehensive programme of consultation and engagement ever undertaken for a road project in the UK. Our application will include a Consultation Report that explains how we have listened to feedback received from all our consultations. You can learn more about what we have done so far in the You said, we did section.

Timeline

• Later in 2021 we will apply for a DCO from the Planning Inspectorate.
• The Planning Inspectorate examines our application and reports to the Secretary of State for Transport, who will ultimately decide whether to grant or refuse consent for the project.
• If our DCO is granted, construction on the new road starts in 2024 – we aim to open for traffic in 2029.
• Learn more about the DCO process on our website

Since 2016, we have worked closely with local communities and stakeholder organisations to shape the project. This consultation is the latest stage in its development.

The story so far

Since the 2016 options consultation, we have carried out:

• three further public consultations
• traffic modelling and environmental and economic studies
• on-site investigations
• continuous engagement with stakeholders

We have listened closely to all the issues raised during previous consultations and engagement, and this has helped us refine the project’s design and our approach to construction and operation.

We’re holding this community impacts consultation to gather feedback on our plans to build and operate the Lower Thames Crossing, including its impacts on local communities and the environment, and our proposals to mitigate these.

We would also like your views on changes to the project since our design refinement consultation and on how we have addressed issues and suggestions received at each of our previous consultations.

Community impacts consultation

Materials in this consultation

We’ve developed a range of materials to help you give your feedback on our proposals.

• Construction update: an overview of the principles and methods that would be used to build the new road and tunnel, and changes to existing utilities infrastructure. It also details the measures proposed to mitigate potential adverse effects.
• Operations update: information on the new road, junctions, the tunnel, utilities, environmental design and green infrastructure. It also includes changes we’ve made since the last consultation, some updates to our traffic forecasts and how this would impact the environment.
• Ward impact summaries: an overview of the changes and impacts the new road may have near you during its construction and operation, including changes to traffic, noise and air quality.
• You said, we did: a summary of the responses received during our three previous consultations and how these have been used to further refine the project’s design.
• Maps: will help to show the project during construction and when it’s open to traffic.

Draft DCO application documents

We’re also consulting on draft versions of other technical documents. These set out how we, and our appointed contractors, would build and operate the new roads. These are available to download from our document library:

• Development Consent Order schedule 2 & explanatory note
• Outline site waste management plan
• Outline Traffic Management Plan for Construction
• Materials handling plan
• Register of Environmental Actions and Commitments
• Code of Construction Practice
• Design principles
• Wider network impacts – management & monitoring plan
• Outline landscape & ecology management plan
• Framework travel plan

How to have your say