Dartford – Thurrock maintenance
The Dartford Crossing, also known as the A282, connects directly at both ends with the M25 London Orbital Motorway, one of the busiest motorways in Europe. Carrying over 50 million vehicles a year, the Dartford Crossing is designed to handle 135,000 vehicles a day, but the average is now 150,000 a day – with the busiest days seeing up to 180,000 vehicles using it. We’re carrying out an extensive programme of repairs and maintenance work over the next several years to keep journeys safe and reliable for road users. To keep disruption to a minimum, we carry out our work overnight, typically between the hours of 10pm and 6am.
The Dartford Crossing carries more than 180,000 vehicles every day.
Our maintenance work on the QEII bridge
We use special jet-washers to clear the gullies on the QEII bridge so rainwater can drain away quickly
Cleaning up litter on the QEII bridge
Latest updates
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02 April 2026
QEII Bridge cable stay refurbishment work - April to September 2026
Regular overnight lane closures will be in place across the QEII Bridge (9pm to 6am) for planned maintenance work to the bridge’s steel cable stays. A minimum of one lane will remain open for traffic each night.
Easter weekend
To help facilitate journeys this bank holiday weekend, there are no works planned at the Dartford Crossing between Thursday 2 April and Monday 6 April.
Latest updates
Following the bank holiday, a programme of overnight maintenance work will begin on the QEII bridge.
The first phase of this work is scheduled to take place overnight between 7 April and 30 September between 9pm and 6am.
The work on the bridge will include:
- cleaning, inspecting and refurbishing the steel cable stays above the bridge deck to protect them from corrosion
- the replacement of several bridge bearings
- the renewal of key components within the bridge’s expansion joints
- essential inspections
Overnight lane closures (9pm-6am)
To provide safe access for our teams and protect road users, we’ll need to install regular overnight lane closures on the bridge on various nights of the week to complete these works. Typically, this will mean:
- two or three lanes will be closed across the bridge between 9pm and 6am
- a rolling roadblock will be used to safely install the first stages of traffic management, before traffic is fully released and the remaining traffic management is installed
- at least one lane will remain open to traffic each night to maintain southbound travel from Thurrock into Kent
We’ve planned this work carefully and following a successful trial last year, a new rolling roadblock system will be used to set up the first stages of traffic management. Typically, this will take around five minutes to complete before traffic is fully released and the remaining closure can be safely installed.
This method reduces the time taken to install traffic management and allows up to an extra 90 minutes of work to be completed during each shift, reducing the overall number of night closures required and minimising additional disruption to road users.
A total of 112 cable stays (56 pairs) support the QEII bridge, and we aim to complete the maintenance of 53 cable stays this year. Following a break over next winter, we plan to continue work on the remaining 56 cable stays in 2027. We completed work on three cable stays during our trials last year.
We’ll complete most other work on the Dartford Crossing during our standard times for overnight working. This is between
- 10pm and 5:30am Mondays to Thursdays
- 11pm to 6am Fridays
- 10pm to 5am on Saturdays and Sundays
This also applies to the northbound Dartford tunnels where we typically close one of the two tunnels each night for maintenance:
Upcoming closures
- Tuesday 7 April to Thursday 9 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Friday 10 April: Dartford east tunnel, 11pm to 6am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Saturday 11 April: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 12 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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31 March 2026
Updated closure information
Monday 30 March to Wednesday 1 April - Dartford west tunnel
Closed overnight (10pm to 5.30am).
Tuesday 7 April to Saturday 11 April - M25 northbound from junction 2 to A282 junction 1a
Closed for maintenance including litter clearance.
Diversion by -- A2 eastbound to Bean
- B255 northbound
- A206 Crossways Boulevard westbound
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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27 February 2026
Upcoming closure information updated
Dartford tunnels
Overnight closures of the Dartford west tunnel will continue on weeks commencing 2 and 9 March to allow essential lighting maintenance to be carried out safely.
QEII bridge closure, Saturday 28 February (10pm to 5am)
The QEII bridge will be closed overnight between 10.30pm and 5am for routine safety inspections and maintenance
A contraflow diversion route will be installed through the Dartford east tunnel from 10pm on Saturday night to maintain travel in the southbound direction
The Dartford west tunnel will remain open overnight for northbound traffic. Please note a height restriction will apply in the northbound direction to vehicles between 4.8m (15’-9”) and 5.0m (16’-6”) high.
Important information for drivers of goods vehicles and high-sided vehicles is available here.
Upcoming closures
- Friday 27 February: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 28 February: QEII bridge closure, 10:30pm to 5am
- Sunday 1 March: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 2 to Thursday 5 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 6 March: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 7 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 8 March: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 9 to Thursday 12 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 13 March: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 14 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 15 March: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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13 February 2026
Dartford tunnels
Overnight closures of the Dartford west tunnel will continue from week commencing Monday 16 February to allow essential lighting maintenance to be carried out safely.
QEII bridge closure, Saturday 28 February (10pm-5am)
The QEII bridge will be closed overnight between 10pm and 5am for routine safety inspections and maintenance.
A contraflow diversion route will be installed through the Dartford east tunnel from 9:30pm on Saturday night to maintain travel in the southbound direction.
The Dartford west tunnel will remain open overnight for northbound traffic.
Please note a height restriction will apply in the northbound direction to vehicles between 4.8m (15’-9”) and 5.0m (16’-6”) high.
Important information for drivers of goods vehicles and high-sided vehicles is available here.
Please note that closures can change at short notice.
Upcoming closures
- Saturday 14 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 15 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 16 to Thursday 19 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 20 February: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 21 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 22 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 23 to Thursday 26 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 27 February: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 28 February: QEII bridge closure, 10pm to 5am, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 29 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
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30 January 2026
Upcoming overnight closures
Overnight closures of the Dartford west tunnel will take place from the week commencing Monday 25 February to allow essential lighting maintenance to be carried out safely.
Tuesday 10 February
- We’ll also be closing the west tunnel for three nights to carry out essential maintenance to the fire suppression system.
Upcoming closures
- Friday 30 January: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 31 January: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 1 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 2 to Thursday 5 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 6 February: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 7 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 8 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 9 to Thursday 12 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 13 February: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 14 February: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 15 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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12 January 2026
Upcoming closure information updated
Wednesday 21, Thursday 22 (10pm-5:30am) and Friday 23 January (11pm-6am) - M25 junction 2 to A282 junction 1a (northbound)
- safely complete surveys of technology equipment including traffic signals, message signs, and CCTV
M25 northbound (anticlockwise) traffic will be diverted by:
- junction 2
- the A2 eastbound
- B255 northbound
- and the A206 Crossways Boulevard westbound to A282 junction 1a
Access to the Dartford east tunnel will be unavailable. Important information for drivers of goods vehicles and high-sided vehicles is available here.
Saturday 24 January (10pm-5am) - QEII bridge closure
- The QEII bridge will be closed overnight between 10pm and 5am for routine safety inspections and maintenance
- A contraflow diversion route will be installed through the Dartford east tunnel from 9:30pm on Saturday night to maintain travel in the southbound direction
- The Dartford west tunnel will remain open overnight for northbound traffic. Please note a height restriction will apply in the northbound direction to vehicles between 4.8m (15’-9”) and 5.0m (16’-6”) high. Important information for drivers of goods vehicles and high-sided vehicles is available here
Upcoming closures
- Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 January: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5:30am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Friday 23 January: Dartford east tunnel, 11pm to 6am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Saturday 24 January: QEII bridge closure, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 25 January: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 26 to Thursday 29 January: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5.30am
- Friday 30 January: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 31 January: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 1 February: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
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11 April 2025
Upcoming QEII Bridge maintenance
With spring upon us, we’ll soon be resuming our painting work on the QEII Bridge to protect some of its metal components from corrosion.
The painting will take place between April and October, and we’ll be able to do most of it without disrupting traffic. We set up a temporary walkway access for our workers on the offside of the bridge in 2024. This will remain in place over the coming years to provide access to most areas that need painting.
Sometimes, to safely access some of the other areas requiring painting, we’ll need to install overnight lane closures across the bridge between 10pm and 5.30am. One lane will remain open across the bridge for traffic when we need to do this.
Our next full overnight closure of the QEII Bridge, for routine safety inspections and maintenance, is scheduled between 10pm on Saturday 26 April and 5am on Sunday 27 April 2025.
Upcoming closures
- Friday 11 April: Dartford west tunnel, 11pm to 6am
- Saturday 12 April: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 13 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 14 April to Thursday 17 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Tuesday 22 April and Thursday 24 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Saturday 26 April: QEII Bridge closure, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 27 April: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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07 March 2025
Essential carriageway repairs, Tuesday 11 March
We’ll carry out essential repairs to the A282/M25 southbound carriageway between junction 1a (Dartford crossing) and junction 2 (Darenth interchange). To do this safely, we'll need a full carriageway closure from 10pm Tuesday 11 March to 5.30am Wednesday 12 March.
A diversion will be in place via A282 junction 1a, the A206 Crossways Boulevard eastbound, the B255 southbound and the A2 westbound, re-joining the M25 at junction 2.
Road users wishing to join the A282/M25 at junction 1a northbound will need to follow the same diversion to travel through the Dartford east tunnel.
Upcoming closures
Friday 7 March to Sunday 23 March 2025
- Monday 10 to Friday 14 March: Dartford west tunnel, 9pm to 6am
- Saturday 15 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 16 March: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
- Monday 17 to Friday 21 March: Dartford west tunnel, 9pm to 6am
- Saturday 22 March: Dartford west tunnel, 10pm to 5am
- Sunday 23 March: Dartford east tunnel, 10pm to 5am (no access for vehicles over 4.8m)
Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.
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23 July 2024
Bridge re-waterproofing work
We’re re-waterproofing and resurfacing the bridge which carries the M25 anticlockwise carriageway between junction 31 (Lakeside) and junction 30 (A13) throughout July and August 2024.We've made good progress re-waterproofing the hard shoulder across the bridge.
To continue our work, we'll need overnight weekend closures (8pm to 10am) in early August.
Please remember that closure details can change at short notice. For the most up-to-date information, please check our daily closures page.
Project information
Overview
The Dartford Crossing is currently the only way to cross the Thames east of London by road and links the counties of Essex and Kent via the QEII bridge for southbound traffic and two 1.4km-long tunnels for northbound journeys.
The A282 also connects directly at both ends with the M25 London Orbital Motorway, one of the busiest motorways in Europe.
Benefits
To keep this part of the network safe and secure, our work will include:
- Upgrading CCTV and lighting
- Waterproofing
- Maintaining ventilation, electrical and drainage systems
- Replacing tunnel bearings and repairing the concrete tunnel walkways
- Replacing expansion joints on the viaduct
- Replacing the panels which form the tunnel linings
- Carrying out maintenance to the QEII bridge pylons, cable stays and dampers
Additional work will also include:
- Replacing areas of corroded steelwork
- Tile repairs
- Paintwork
We’ll do most of our work overnight to keep disruption to a minimum and planned our work so that multiple schemes can run at the same time.
Dartford Crossing diversion routes
Dartford Crossing diversions
- East tunnel – vehicles less than 4.8m (15‘-9”) high will be diverted via the west tunnel. Vehicles between 4.8m (15‘-9”) and 5.0m (16’-6”) high will be diverted via M25 clockwise.
- West tunnel – drivers will be diverted via the east tunnel.
- QEII bridge diversion – southbound traffic will be diverted via the east tunnel. Vehicles less than 4.8m (15‘-9”) high travelling northbound will be able to use the west tunnel as usual and for vehicles between 4.8m (15‘-9”) and 5.0m (16’-6”) high, an alternative diversion will be in place via the M25 clockwise.
Documents
Traffic information
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