The Petition of residents of Dartford and readers of the Dartford Messenger newspaper,
Declares that the Petitioners are opposed to any increase in tolls charged for the Dartford Crossing.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Department for Transport not to increase tolls on the Dartford Crossing and to reconsider the emergency measures to lift the barriers during severe congestion and extend the local residents discount scheme.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Gareth Johnson, Official Report, Wednesday 14 September 2011; Vol. 532, c. 1146 .]
[P000960]
Observations from the Secretary of State for Transport, received 3 October 2011:
The Government have not yet made any decisions regarding the future ownership of the Dartford Crossing.
I understand that several key factors need to be considered in the decision-making process including whether a new concession structure would provide better value for the taxpayer, the flexibility needed to provide possible additional crossing capacity in the future, and how user charging policies would be affected.
The Budget statement (22 June), confirmed that decisions will be made on the possibility of providing future additional crossing capacity and the possibilities for letting out a concession at the conclusion of the spending review.