Britons have been warned of the prospect of taxes to help fund the new Lower Thames Crossing which is estimated to cost roughly £9billion.
The crossing would connect drivers from Kent and Essex through a tunnel beneath the River Thames, with the proposed taxes coming from a newly created toll road to relieve pressure on the Dartford Crossing.
But to finance the project, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, hopes to get foreign investors by rewarding them with a percentage of the toll income.
The plan for investors is part of a wider strategy by the new Labour Government to draw private finance to road, energy and water projects, according to the Financial Times.
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New plans would alleviate pressure on the Dartford Crossing
PALast month, Reeves cancelled public road plans in place from the previous Conservative Government citing them as being “unaffordable”.
She said: "[Louise Haigh] has agreed not to move forward with projects that the previous Government refused to publicly cancel despite knowing full well that they were unaffordable.”
The road cancellations included proposed work on the A303 and the A27 which Reeves estimated would save the Government £85million next year.
But in a bid to take pressure off the Government, the FT stated that London residents will pay for the Tideway tunnel through “additional user charges in water bills”.
The Lower Thames Crossing is expected to cost £9billion with Alistair Watson, partner at law firm Taylor Wessing, stating: “Given these costs, the project may require substantial Government funding to substantially ‘de-risk’ the project for private investors.”
National Highways explained that the crossing would connect to the A2 and M2 in Kent to the A13 in Thurrock and junction 29 of the M25 in the London Borough of Havering.
It would be approximately 14.3 miles long, with 2.6 miles of this in two tunnels under the Thames, making them the longest road tunnels in the UK.
The tunnels would be located to the east of the village of Chalk on the south side of the Thames, and to the west of East Tilbury on the north side.
The agency added: “The Crossing will almost double road capacity across the Thames east of London easing congestion on the Dartford Crossing, improving journeys across the south east, and creating a reliable new route across the river
“Its unique position as the only road across the Thames east of London makes the Dartford Crossing one of the most strategically vital roads in the UK, connecting people to jobs, businesses to customers, and some of the country's biggest ports and distribution hubs.”
Congestion at the Dartford Crossing costs the UK millions of pounds every year in time lost sitting in traffic, National Highways warned.
According to official documents, roughly £800million has been spent on the framework for the Lower Thames Crossing already.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
The Crossing is set to feature a new toll road
PAOnce the finances have been approved along with all other planning applications, the Government hopes to start construction within two years.
If the project sticks to its timeline, the crossing is estimated to be fully operational by 2032.
