Representation by Philip Healy
- Date submitted
- 14 January 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
My area of concern is the impact the proposed crossing will have on the increase in volume of traffic that we will experience in the Swale area, IE north & south of the M2 / A249 junction. Traffic volumes at this particular time in negotiating the A249 / M2 junction and then the A249 / M20 junction are horrendous at specific peak times. Admittedly the improvement that is under construction at the A249 / M20 junction due for completion late 2024 will have some lessening of the traffic build up for those choosing to travel in the direction of the Medway towns and in the direction of London but towards the Coast M2 / A2 / A299 will be a different matter with the expected increase in traffic volumes expected from the Lower Thames Crossing. The huge increase in house building in the Swale Area have brought with it huge increases in traffic volumes which hadn't been envisaged by our planners . I'm a cynic and like may others similarly affected i tend to believe the planners totally ignored the ramifications these developments would have on the local infrastructure,as we are finding to our cost, as we go about our daily lives trying to move around the area, the planning applications were adopted despite the huge amount of objections to these developments from the general public. That's my concern regarding the Lower Thames Crossing, but obviously i'm realistic enough to realize that the Dartford crossing has reached capacity and an alternative needs to be sought, my frustration is why it takes so long to implement the plan and get building it!