Kemkaran calls for Kent to get a share in Dart Charge

KENT County Council leader Linden Kemkaran has told the Government that the county should receive some of the income from the Dartford Crossing toll after the price rise comes into effect in September.

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The standard charge for car drivers using the crossing is set to increase from £2.50 to £3.50 from this autumn. In a statement to Parliament last month, Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood MP said the current charge was “no longer sufficient” to manage demand, and that the new charges will be “significantly lower" than if they had increased in line with inflation since 2014.

Cllr Kemkaran has now written to the Government this week saying the toll is a constraint on the local economy and the 40 per cent increase in charges would “only suppress the journeys for the very poorest in our society”.

She also called for some income to be diverted to the county council's coffers.