Drivers will soon have to pay more when using the Dartford Crossing between Essex and Kent as the Dart Charge goes up.
Commuters travelling on the A282 will have to dish out £1 more each time they use the Dartford Crossing from Monday.
From September 1, the Dartford Crossing charge will increase from £2.50 to £3.50 for cars, minibuses and motorhomes, while coaches, buses and vans will be charged £4.20 instead of the previous price of £3.
The Dartford Crossing charge for lorries and large vehicles with more than two axles will increase from £6 to £8.40.
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Motorbikes and mopeds can continue to cross for free. People who are exempt from vehicle tax because of a disability don’t need to pay the Dart Charge.
Residents have been able to cross as many times as they want for £20 a year, but that will also increase to £25 from Monday.
If the charge is not paid by midnight the day after the crossing, drivers receive a £70 fine.
The fee, which is paid by motorists driving on the A282 road through the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge or the northbound tunnels, is used to maintain the bridge.
The route is the UK’s busiest crossing as it sees an average of 150,000 vehicles a day, but it was built for 135,000, National Highways said.
On some days, traffic reaches 180,000, and the crossing is no stranger to gridlocks and severe delays.
Drivers using the crossing, which is made up of the Queen Elizabeth II bridge southbound and two tunnels northbound, have to pay the Dart Charge every time they use it.
Motorists have criticised the Dart Charge after people were wrongly fined for crossings they never made, including a doctor who was fined 34 times after the ANPR cameras mistook another number plate as hers.
Announcing the Dartford Crossing charge increase, junior transport minister, Lilian Greenwood, said the 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.’
The crossing charges have increased steadily since the four-lane bridge opened in 1991, shortly after the M25 opened.
The tunnels, which opened in 1963 and 1980 respectively, originally cost two shillings and sixpence to use.
It is thought the charges were intended to be phased out when the construction costs were covered, but the charges have become a permanent fixture.
People in the area have told Metro that when an incident blocks traffic at Dartford, the nearby local roads become mayhem with diverted vehicles navigating narrow roads.
One resident said it is not uncommon to see huge lorries clogging up the village roads when Dartford traffic is diverted.
In a bid to take pressure off the Dartford Crossing, National Highways wants to build a second crossing nearby, the Lower Thames Crossing.
The £10 billion Lower Thames Crossing was awarded £590 million in government funding after the project was approved by planners.
Dart Charge statement from the government
Here is the full statement from Lilian Greenwood explaining why the Dart Charge increases: ‘The Dartford Crossing is the only fixed road crossing of the River Thames east of London, and one of the most important links in the strategic road network.
‘To manage demand and protect the Crossing’s role as a vital component of the nation’s economic infrastructure, a user charge has been collected at the Crossing since 2003. In 2014, the tollbooths were removed to help make journeys smoother, and the charge was increased to help manage increased demand. This was the last time that charges were increased for all vehicles.
‘In the eleven 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.’
This article was first published on June 18, 2025
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