In November, the Planning Inspectorate accepted the Development Consent Order application and later this year the plans for the Lower Thames Crossing will be examined by a panel of independent, government appointed experts.
Register to take part in the process
The Planning Inspectorate has opened the period for stakeholders and members of the public to register to become an Interested Party by making a Relevant Representation. A Relevant Representation is a written summary of your views on the Lower Thames Crossing. You can register to become an Interested Party on the Planning Inspectorate’s website until 24 February.
The Planning Inspectorate has published a document with answers to Frequently Asked Questions about the pre-examination stage and registering as an Interested Party that you might find useful.
Explore the application documents
All of the application documents can be viewed on the Planning Inspectorate's website. You may not have time to read through them all so a helpful Guide to the Development Consent Order application is available via the National Highways website, with relevant links to documents covering the areas most asked about.
A new video fly-through
A new video fly-through has been published giving a bird’s eye view of the route of the Lower Thames Crossing, 15 years after the road opens. The fly-through uses a 3D computer model of the new road blended with real video footage to show how the route has been designed to sit sensitively in the landscape with 80% of the road below ground level through the use of cuttings, embankments and the tunnel. The video also shows the scale of proposed planting and public open space, including two new public parks, seven green bridges and over one million extra trees.
Changes made to the design in Thurrock and presented in the project’s last consultation are also included, such as changes on the north bank of the Thames to make space for the Thames Freeport, and changes to the connection between the Orsett Cock roundabout to the A1089 to reduce traffic impacts on some local roads.
You can watch the full fly-through video here.
