The Lower Thames Crossing tunnel has been under consideration, but not actual construction, for many years. It would relieve traffic congestion on the A2 and M25 by allowing traffic to avoid the Dartford Crossing. Many people, including me, would benefit, but this is what the FT had to say recently on the planning impediments to getting the project moving forward:

“Lower Thames Crossing has cost £1.2bn even before construction starts. The scheme to build a 14-mile road and tunnel to connect Kent and Essex has become a totem of Britain’s snarled-up planning system, in which ventures are tied up with years of delays and mountains of expensive compliance documents.

The planning document for the project — the first wholly-new Thames river crossing east of London in 60 years — runs to 359,070 pages, while around 150 staff are employed on the project, as well as an eight-strong management team.”

Comment: This is a typical example of UK management incompetence with overpaid consultants creaming off enormous fees and delaying projects while environmental concerns are exaggerated by pressure groups.

See FT article here for more information: https://www.ft.com/content/917d4b7f-318e-46fe-ba44-664551ebcf13

Will I see it completed in my lifetime? It seems doubtful.

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/Drivers_London )

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