Representation by Muriel Blake
- Date submitted
- 22 February 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I wholeheartedly object to the Lower Thames Crossing. It will definitely not solve the congestion and pollution at the Dartford Crossing and will cause even more problems on the local road network both sides of the Thames. It is a complex design that will be confusing to many drivers. Our air quality is already excessively bad and this will just add to it. It would be useless for public transport, as there aren’t the connections for buses, and no other options including for cyclists. I am worried about the dangers with there not being a hard shoulder as it would be built to smart motorway standards. Our emergency services are already stretched without this extra dangerous road, and we don’t even have a hospital in Thurrock. During construction building the road would devastate the area, and cause disruption to our everyday lives with roads being closed for long durations. At a cost of more than £10bn this is not a good way to spend public money which could be much better spent on other public services. When it was first considered other alternatives were not looked at adequately, and a lot of things have changed considerably since then. It would be better to get more freight off the roads and onto rail. I am worried about the impacts to nature, wildlife, and the environment. We need to be planting more trees, not destroying them. Ancient woodlands are irreplaceable. Once the damage is done to our environment it would be hard to replace. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. What is being proposed as mitigation is simply not good enough. I enjoy spending time outdoors and going for walks and am concerned about the noise and air pollution. Spending time outdoors is good for our health and wellbeing. The cost to the NHS for healthcare as a result of the LTC impacts needs to be considered. The LTC would destroy so much farmland, which would put farmers out of business and mean less land to grow our food. This would lead to more food being imported which has a bigger impact on the environment. We need to do better at a time of climate emergency, not more carbon and destruction of the environment. The public are not able to review and process the huge amount of documents to get information that National Highways withheld in consultation, so now we’re disadvantaged in understanding exactly what is being proposed.