Lower Thames Crossing Sale to Private Investors Confirmed as Completion Slips to 2034

The government has confirmed that the Lower Thames Crossing will be delivered through private investment and is now scheduled to be completed in 2034, marking a significant delay to the long-planned road tunnel between Kent and Essex.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has appointed senior civil servant Kate Cohen as the official personally accountable for the project, shifting overall responsibility away from National Highways. According to an appointment letter published this week, Cohen will remain in post until the project concludes in 2034.

Previous timelines suggested the crossing would open in the early 2030s, with National Highways earlier this year indicating a 2032 completion date. The scheme was initially expected to be finished in 2027 but encountered prolonged delays during the planning process.

An application for development consent was first submitted in October 2020 but withdrawn the following month after feedback from inspectors. A revised application was not lodged until November 2022, with approval eventually granted in March 2025.

While the total cost of the project is estimated at around £10bn, the final funding structure has yet to be confirmed. Treasury documents published alongside last month’s Budget indicate that ministers favour using a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model. This would see private backers fund construction and begin recovering their investment through user charges, such as tolls, before the crossing opens.

Cohen’s role includes overseeing the sale of the project to investors and developing the legal and regulatory framework required to support private ownership. Until recently, responsibility for the scheme sat with National Highways director Shaun Pidcock.

In October, the government rejected claims that National Highways’ involvement would be reduced as the project progressed.

The plans have drawn criticism from transport campaigners. Chris Todd, director of the Transport Action Network, said the approach risked repeating mistakes made in earlier private finance initiatives. He warned that tolls at the existing Dartford Crossing could increase and claimed the new route would only offer short-term congestion relief.

Todd urged ministers to reconsider, arguing that investment would be better directed toward rail schemes. He also criticised what he described as an inconsistency between plans to renationalise rail services and the decision to privatise delivery of the country’s largest road project.

Major construction contracts have already been awarded. A joint venture between Bouygues Travaux Publics and Murphy secured the £1.34bn tunnelling package in December 2023, while Balfour Beatty was awarded a £1.2bn contract for roadworks north of the Thames in January 2023.

The Department for Transport has been approached for comment.