Highways England has confirmed the Dart Charge project to improve the road layout around the Dartford Crossing has been completed.
Roadworks in place since November to remove old payment booths and install a new safety system for heavy vehicles have finished and the road layout is complete. The temporary 30mph speed limit has been replaced with a new 50mph limit.
Dart Charge project director Nigel Gray said, “Dart Charge has already brought significant improvements to the 140,000 journeys that are made at the Dartford Crossing every day. Journeys are now set to improve further, with four lanes in each direction all operating with a 50mph speed limit. It is a significant milestone for the project and means drivers will benefit from faster, less stressful journeys at this vital transport gateway.”
Over the weekend, teams switched southbound traffic onto its final alignment as it leaves the crossing, removing the ‘kink’ in the road that had been necessary through the roadworks. Northbound traffic moved to its final layout in June when the traffic safety system went live. The 50mph limit at the crossing is in place 24 hours a day in both directions and is enforced by average speed cameras.
This latest milestone achievement is the culmination of 82 weeks of construction work. Since mid-June, 4,800 tonnes of Tarmac have been used to surface the new southbound road layout, and 140m3 of concrete have been used to build a new retaining wall to separate the northbound and southbound carriageway and raise the height of the existing carriageway.
Work to construct new roadside verges and install a signage gantry will continue overnight.
