The Freight Transport Association has slammed the Government for increasing charges at the Dartford River Crossing. The first rise comes in October this year, when the toll for a heavy goods vehicle will jump by £1.30, to £5.00. Drivers using the ‘Dart-Tag’ will see their fee jump from £3.20 to £4.33. Car users will see a 50p increase.

Malcolm Bingham, FTA Head of Road Network Management Policy said: “We are disappointed, as we feel that the government has not taken any notice of us at all. We had asked them to peg the Dart-Tag fee. “Any toll increase is damaging to our members, but we welcome the process of bringing in free flow tolling.”

The FTA reckons that the toll plazas themselves are responsible for the majority of congestion; it costs an estimated £1 per minute per HGV to queue at the Dartford tolls.