PRESS RELEASE

Lower Thames Crossing spiralling costs: 17% increase in just 9 months

Transport Action Network (TAN) has condemned the “utterly predictable” news in the Financial Times¹ that the cost of the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) has jumped 17% to £11bn in just 9 months. The private investment needed has risen from £6.3bn to £7.5bn, up 19%². This will lead to significantly higher tolls being charged at Dartford and the LTC, to repay the debt, much as predicted. TAN has previously calculated that tolls at Dartford could triple to pay for the LTC³.

Chris Todd Director of TAN, said:

“Those cheering on the Lower Thames Crossing will find themselves short changed, as costs have predictably ballooned. This will result in higher tolls at Dartford and LTC for decades to come, much as we have previously predicted. National Highways’ traffic data shows the LTC will bring just five years relief at Dartford, for seven years of construction chaos. This is bad for growth and bad for the country.

“The LTC will drain the economy, diverting critical funds away from better value rail projects such as Ely junctions⁴. These would drive growth across the whole country rather than pouring more money into London to congest the south east.”

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Notes for editors

1. Taxpayers to contribute more than £3bn to Lower Thames Crossing, Financial Times, 3 December 2025 ↩︎
2. National Highways estimated in February 2025 that the total cost of the LTC would be £9.4bn if a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) funding model was used (Table 2.1). It also estimated that £6.3bn of private finance would be needed. Today the FT reported that the Treasury has confirmed the cost would be “almost £11bn” and that the government needs to secure £7.5bn of private capital. ↩︎
3. Lower Thames Crossing could triple tolls at Dartford, campaigners say, Guardian, 29 May 2025 ↩︎
4. Charlotte Cane MP has secured an Adjournment Debate in the House of Commons this evening (Wednesday, 3 December) on the ‘Potential merits of Government support for the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement Scheme’. Additionally England’s Economic Heartland and Transport East have produced a briefing, Keeping Trade on Track, outlining the benefits and strong business case the Ely scheme has. It has a Benefit-Cost-Ratio (BCR) of 4.89, compared to the Lower Thames Crossing which only had a BCR of 1.22 before the latest cost increases. ↩︎

For more information about the LTC, see TAN’s website, and in particular its latest briefing (pre-Budget), before another £891m was pledged for the LTC: The Lower Thames Crossing ‘smart’ motorway is the enemy of growth.