The sustainable transport lobby group Transport Action Network has written to the Planning Inspectorate setting out its objections to the decision to consider private finance to fund the Lower Thames Crossing.
A Development Consent Order for the project was approved by the Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander earlier in the week.
But in a letter to the case manager, the Transport Action Network claimed that “seeking private finance does not make the LTC any cheaper or more affordable. It just makes it more expensive overall, making an already weak economic case even weaker.”
It lists key concerns around estimation of cost, a lack of likelihood of achieving private funding and the continued uncertainty for people living nearby.
It also states: “Our concern is that much of the debate around the Lower Thames Crossing is based on the
figures provided by National Highways. As these figures have been shown to be unreliable and
continue to rise.”
(Picture – Yay Images)
