Asked by: Stephen Metcalfe (Conservative - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Dartford Crossing has closed in the last 12 months; and what the cause of each closure was.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Dartford Crossing consists of two bored tunnels and the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge.
There has been only one planned closure in the last 12 months where the crossing has been fully closed i.e. both the bridge and the tunnels. This was for overnight works on 15 August 2015 for the removal and installation of new gantries for the Dartcharge project.
There have also been 81 occasions when either the bridge or one of the tunnel bores have been closed for planned construction or maintenance works. These works were carried out overnight when traffic flows are such that they can be accommodated by the remaining open elements of the crossing. The 81 occasions comprise 4 bridge closures, 42 west bore closures and 35 east bore closures.
There have been 9 unplanned bridge closures; twice for high wind and 7 for broken down vehicles, collisions and police-led incidents.
There have been 5 unplanned closures of the west tunnel; 4 traffic incidents and once to repair a road defect.
There have been 12 unplanned closures of the east tunnel; 10 times for traffic incidents (4 broken down vehicles, 5 collisions and one diesel spill) and twice for road repairs.
Asked by: Stephen Metcalfe (Conservative - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the average length of a (a) delay and (b) tailback caused by the closure of the Dartford Crossing; and what effect a new crossing would have on those averages.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Typically there are in excess of 300 incidents per year resulting in partial or full closures of the Dartford Crossing. On average each incident takes approximately 27 minutes to deal with, often requiring a lane closure for safety. During this time queues build rapidly towards junctions 29 and 3 of the M25 and take a further 3 to 5 hours for the road condition to return to normal.
Highways England are continuing to explore ways of reducing incidents and improving clear up times. In the longer term, with a new crossing, there would be increased capacity to cross the river so the effect of any incident would be less extreme. If one of the tunnels were to close today, the northbound capacity of the crossing would reduce by 50%. With the new Lower Thames Crossing in place at either Dartford or Gravesend, a closure of one of the tunnels at the Dartford Crossing would still leave more capacity than exists today without an incident, so recovery times would be much improved.
Asked by: Stephen Metcalfe (Conservative - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the data used to predict traffic flow at the proposed new Lower Thames Crossing - Option C was generated; and whether that data is publicly available.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The traffic modelling carried out to inform the assessment of alternative options has been based on an extensive assessment of travel and road usage patterns. The underlying data was collected through extensive observations and roadside surveys as part of the London Area Transport Surveys in 2001. This data was updated in 2009. A ‘Review of Lower Thames Crossing Options: Model Capability Report’ which was produced in 2013 examined the suitability of the traffic modelling, including the use of the 2009 data, for strategic assessment of the Lower Thames Crossing options, and this report concluded that the overall model performance was suitable for options assessment at this stage. This report is available online at gov.uk.
Further detail on the recent modelling for Options A and C is available in Volume 5 of the Scheme Assessment Report which can be viewed on line at the consultation website on the project website via www.lower-thames-crossing.co.uk. It is also available as a hard copy at the public information events and local libraries as a reference document but not to be taken away. Highways England can also send out a copy to anyone who requests it through the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.