Almost 3.5m fines issued since Dartford Crossing went barrierless

Almost 3.5m fines have been issued to drivers for not paying the Dartford Crossing charge since the Dart Charge system replaced manned toll booths two years ago.

The crossing comprises a bridge and road tunnel across the Thames in Kent, to the east of London. It is operated by Highways England, a government agency. Highways England, which operates the crossing, said the move to the barrierless Dart Charge had cut northbound crossings by six minutes and southbound crossings by more than seven minutes.

The Dart Charge uses ANPR technology to monitor usage on bridge and tunnel crossing with drivers paying via an account.  Drivers who set up a Dart Charge account benefit from a reduction on crossing fees. Payments can be made online, by phone, or by cash at a Payzone outlet. Drivers who do cross the river without paying are sent penalty notices in the post.

There have been 78m chargeable journeys on the crossing since the Dart Charge was introduced. A Highways England spokesman said: "The vast majority of drivers are paying their Dart Charge correctly, more than 93% overall. Since it was introduced more than £150m has been collected from Dart Charge, money that is being ploughed back into UK transport.”

The number of fines unpaid by UK-based drivers has passed half a million, Highways England revealed in a response to a BBC Freedom of Information request.

The BBC’s FOI revealed the level on non-payment of fines. Some 250,752 fines issued to UK drivers this year have gone unpaid. “We enforce payment of Dart Charge here and abroad and are recovering those charges every day,” said Highways England.

Highway England’s figures also reveal more than 745,000 fines for foreign vehicles were referred to a European debt recovery agency since the payment system changed. After seeking advice from transport minister John Hayes, Highways England declined to reveal how much money foreign-registered drivers still owed. The BBC reports that Highways England said that releasing the information could “encourage non-payment”. 

The £70 fine for non-payment is reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days, but increased to £105 if a driver does not pay. Drivers who want to contest a penalty can appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.