With the new average speed cameras, already costing a massive £350,000 to install, and another £2million to install variable speed limit signs, the National Road Network need to gain these costs back.
Unfortunately, the costs are going to be coming out of the pockets of the motorist that use the bridge every day to commute to and from work.
Work will begin in Late 2019 to put toll booths at each end of the bridge. Drivers will have to pay before crossing. Work is expected to last 6 weeks with minimal disruption to the traffic flow.
It has been confirmed that the “Old Bridge” along Sheppey Way, will still be toll free for drivers to use, but concerns have been raised from the Wild Life parks in the area, that the increase in traffic will cause issues to wildlife and nature.
Official prices for crossing have been released today. £2.50 per crossing for cars and vans, with an increase for lorries. A table bellow shows rates for “One-Off” crossings.
Local residents and business will be able to apply for a permit, similar to the Dartford Crossing for a reduced rate. But this is limited to 2 vehicles per household.
Bollocks to that . Living on a a police free island. A council which only wants to gain income off new homes and not put any form of recreation back for young kids pees me off.greedy mothers.
Bill???,
Police free, they are the biggest bunch of wasters in the UK, pushing out 6 monthly cycle of Police notification letters for some pscho manist taxi controller on the island, as it suits her, to change her relationships.
Council, police just a lazy bunch of glutonous idiots.
We were looking at buying on the Island when we return to the UK. Bill is also correct that with all the new houses there has been no recreation investment for kids and families, such as a cinema restaurant complex with bowling. I am Sheppey born and to return to the Island was a real thought but I am afraid the toll charges for a bridge without lighting is the final nail in the coffin for us to look elsewhere. All this will do is increase the traffic through Iwade to use the old bridge. I urge everyone to stop using the new bridge they won’t recoup any money then. This plan will drive commuters away and any new investment in the Island.
Who’s going to go there now? Already struggling. Feel sorry for the locals this is so unfair.
The most likely conclusion will be that islanders will be issued with Passport/ID tags this will entitle them to a higher fee than non-islanders. Gordon (can you smell burning) Henderson is rumoured to be asking Parliment to consider making all islanders wear Blue Hats when out of their homes. This would serve as a warning to non-islanders that there is an increased likely-hood of anti-social behaviour when they see a person a Blue Hat
Really this has got to be a joke no one is going to use it…we will all go on and off the old way bunch of div’s. This place is getting worse not better!
If that does happy, ppl will go back on the old Rd to get in. Or they put Tolles on the little crossing.
I am thinking this is very good idea and some of the monies raised can be spend on street lighting for this dark bridge.
If they’d built the bridge right in the first place they wouldn’t have to put all these new measures in…this has got to be a joke surely…
So I’m a holiday home owner and that means every weekend I come to Sheppey it will cost me at least £15 every weekend cos I go on and off island, day trips out or shopping in Maidstone or sittingbourne visiting places, this is outrage people like me, holiday makers will just not come to the island if it happens I will be selling up and moving out ?
I work off the island and this is really bad. We shouldn’t have to pay to come off and on our island we all pay tax, cauncil tax and national insurance and now we have to pay more out unfair. Not happy with this.
Working off the island every week day without other times ( evening out etc) as a resident would still be paying approximately £50 a month if the figures given don’t change maybe when they need the lower road sorting to allow for the traffic that always builds up even out of holiday season we can all dig deep in our empty highly already taxed for almost everything pockets and scrape a few hundred pounds more from us all
Just bomb the shit hole
If this is true anyone that lives on the island shouldn’t have to pay. But if this is true anyone that is coming on to the island to visit or work should this was all the people on the island may get a job on the island and will not have to travel off
Hope this is a fucking joke me and my missed struggle bad enough as it is and new born soon gonna struggle even more and working of sheerness and family we often go on and off somtimes 3 times a day like fuck am I paying tht I’ll be crashing through those barriers
How funny as if it was going to charge every day every time you cross ,never 8in a billion years ,the one of crossing is giving it away
Why is it the motorists are always an easy touch when they want to more money , so because they want to recover the cost of signs and cameras everybody pays and they will sell it to the French like the QE2 bridge bet the prison vans don’t pay
fuck off you robbing cunts, you should pay us for putting up with the shit infrastructure thats been out of date for at least 20 years you fucking toss pots.
I’ve just moved to Sheppy bought an house
Wish I hadn’t it’s a dirty shit hole they should fucking sink this god forsaken place
No parks nothing for kids to do except amusement arcades.
And don’t get me started on the Dog shit everywhere
We pay enough for council and road tax, why a fucking toll charge, even with the local permit its still going to sting us islanders, the roadworks they’ve got going on Barton hill as well as the new housing going up, we’ve hardly got anywhere to park our cars, some doctors surgeries are only open part time with a 2.1/2 month wait for new patients appointment
Greed Greed Greed that’s the story of human nature Today. The tail backs of traffic for this place is going to get bad just like the rest of the toll bridges we pay for. Absolutely ludicrous what a Disgrace
Tory Britain and don’t say its the same under labour because it was not just think the last time the Tories were in before Labour we had souring inflation and house prices collapsed.
Repossessions all over the place and dropping wages people have short memories. They say the southeast is prosperous well come down to Sheppie and the Medway area under investment for years.
This is a joke my childhood dreams all down the loo I still take my family down there now but won’t be anymore the arcades are struggling as it is this will just destroy what they have left all because the government are greedy bas@#$#