Full details of new £10,000,000,000 Lower Thames Crossing after it is approved

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The government has given the green light to a new 14-mile road and tunnel to connect Kent with Essex below the Thames.

It’s hoped the massive new project will relieve pressure on the Dartford Crossing further west, which currently handles up to 180,000 vehicles every day on the M25.

Two 2.6-mile tunnels will be built under the Thames with a 70mph speed limit on three lanes in both directions.

Over £1.2 billion has already been spent on the project, just for the planning application and public consultation.

Lower Thames Crossing development consent decision announced The Lower Thames Crossing application has today been granted development consent by the Secretary of State for Transport. gov.uk — An artist’s impression of the new tunnels below the Thames (Picture: Gov.uk)

The current cost estimate for completing it is £8.95 billion – though the government has said there is a ‘normal level of uncertainty at this early stage’ considering the ‘size and complexity’ of the plans.

A government source told Metro: ‘The Lower Thames Crossing will be a key strategic route for drivers, freight, and logistics – improving connectivity between the South and the Midlands, linking up our ports, and unlocking regional economic growth.

‘This demonstrates this government’s commitment to delivering the vital infrastructure the country needs to succeed, and to be on the side of the builders, not the blockers.’

A maps shows where the Lower Thames Crossing will be built connecting Essex and Kent. — A map shows where the new Lower Thames Crossing will be built after the plans were given a green light (Picture: Metro)

The project has been in the pipeline since 2009.

But it was delayed in October when the government delayed the planning approval until the spring.

Jim Dickson, the MP for Dartford, told Metro: ‘For far too long governments have dodged making a decision on the Lower Thames Crossing leaving Dartford residents to endure endless gridlock.

‘Now under this Labour Government, the new crossing has finally received the green light and will be built.

‘This decision will unlock economic growth across the country and finally deliver a solution to the traffic chaos faced by my constituents on a daily basis.’

National Highways has been pushing for the new crossing for years, saying it would help take traffic from the Dartford Crossing, which is carrying around 20,000 more vehicles a day than it was originally built for.

Traffic on the Dartford Crossing between Kent and Essex. — Dartford Crossing west of the planned Lower Thames Crossing regularly sees heavy traffic and congestion (Picture: Bloomberg/Getty Images)

However, campaigners have criticised the Lower Thames Crossing plans, saying it will increase emissions if opened.

Chris Todd, the director of campaign group Transport Action Network, said: ‘This is absolute madness. It’s a desperate decision to distract from the likely bad news in the Chancellor’s Spring Statement tomorrow.

‘When the Government can’t afford to properly fund the NHS and our roads are falling apart, it’s cutting back on benefits and putting vulnerable people at risk. It really has got its priorities in a muddle.

‘At a likely cost of £16 billion, this road is simply unaffordable.

The only way that the Government can afford this white elephant would be to take money from all the other nations and regions in the UK.

‘Rather than boosting growth, this will clog up roads in the south east and slow the economy down even more.’

River Thames crossings have made headlines recently after TfL confirmed the opening date for the new Silvertown Tunnel.

When the new London tunnel opens in April, drivers face a £4 charge at Silvertown and the nearby Blackwall Tunnel.

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