TODAY’S announcement is incredibly disappointing that the Conservative Government will be pressing ahead with Option C, Variant 3 which will devastate the local community in Thurrock.
Cllr Tim Aker MEP said: “Highways England received their largest number of responses in any consultation in objection to another Thames Crossing. Their persistence shows that this was a sham consultation, a PR exercise by a Government with its fingers in its ears.
“Thurrock suffers from high pollution levels, congestion and infrastructure under strain as it is. Adding more traffic to this will destroy the standard of living we have here in Thurrock. This new crossing will cost billions and will only take 14% of traffic from the Dartford Crossing. As our population increases and new pull factors on the borough emerge, this will do nothing. Nothing about the Government’s ridiculous plans make sense. They just want to dump on Thurrock – again.
“We will fight this all the way and residents should know they can pick up objection letters from my office in Grays. We are the only Party that says nationally that we oppose a new Crossing through Thurrock.
UKIP Thurrock Group Leader, Cllr Graham Snell said: “This announcement just goes to prove that Government consultations are nothing more than a sham. The UKIP Group on Thurrock Council have opposed a new crossing in the Borough from the beginning. I, along with the other Group Leaders have consistently spoken and written to both Highways England and the Secretary of State to put to them our objections. It seems it has all been ignored. With the existing and highly polluting crossing in the west of the Borough and a new crossing in the east: the most populous part of Thurrock will indeed be caught in a triangle of toxicity. This is a sad day for our Borough.”
UKIP National Transport Spokesman, Jill Seymour MEP said: “Thurrock’s road network is already over stretched, in many cases the increases in traffic is putting Thurrock in a dangerous position if emergency services are required to cross the borough quickly.
“I call on Tories and Labour to announce where their parties stand on the issue. I have a feeling these calls will be met with silence as they were a year ago. It is a shame that only UKIP are willing to show national opposition to this project.”
