Heavy Goods Vehicles have been found to still be using the Dartford Crossing despite the charge increasing this month in a bid to stop large vehicles using the popular route.
Data has revealed that lorries have continued to pour across the Thames gateway even after ministers slapped hauliers with a 40 per cent rise from September 1.
Telematics firm GeoTab tracked more HGV crossings on the very first day of higher fees compared with the week before, undermining the official line from Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood that sky-high charges would force drivers onto alternative routes.
Instead, haulage companies were found to be simply paying up with truck operators now handing over £8.40 per trip, up from £6.
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The Dartford Crossing increased its fees by 40 per cent on September 1
| PAVans and coaches have been hit with a rise from £3 to £4.20, while car drivers pay £3.50 instead of £2.50. Locals with an annual pass have seen their cost rise too, from £20 to £25.
Ms Greenwood insisted back in June that the increases were "necessary" because the crossing is operating "well beyond capacity", disrupting M25 traffic and blighting local communities. She argued the old tolls were no longer "sufficient to manage demand".
But the hard numbers tell a different story, according to GeoTab, a staggering 85 per cent of HGV crossings on September 1 took place in peak hours between 6am and 10pm.
The company told This is Money: "Operators are not changing behaviour. The revenue increase will come straight from logistics companies’ pockets."
The Dartford Crossing carries around 50 million vehicles a year | PACrucially, GPS data showed congestion failed to budge, with crossing times and average speeds virtually identical to August levels, proving that the toll rise brought no immediate relief to drivers.
Reports revealed that truck volumes at Dartford have already risen 15 per cent this year, while journey times have lengthened and average speeds have slowed.
AA President Edmund King slammed the tolls as a "totally unjustified tax on movement", pointing out that "most drivers don’t have another option".
He added: "Even hauliers from Scotland say the Dartford Crossing is essential for getting freight to southern ports."
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RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said the Government’s claim that the hikes were about easing congestion would "surprise no one, except perhaps ministers themselves". He warned that hauliers "have no choice" but to pay up, meaning higher costs will inevitably be passed on to shoppers.
The Road Haulage Association called the move "regrettable" at a time when fuel and operating costs are already punishing the industry.
The controversy has also re-ignited anger over the broken promises surrounding the crossing. Tolling began in 1963 to pay for the first tunnel, with drivers charged two shillings and sixpence.
When the £120 million Queen Elizabeth II Bridge opened in 1991, ministers pledged that charges would end by 2003 once construction costs were repaid.
The crossing increased its fees by 40 per cent to help discourage travel | GETTYBut in 2001, that promise was abandoned, with, instead of lifting tolls, the Government claiming free passage would bring traffic chaos.
Since then, the crossing has been labelled a cash cow, raising millions every year, with Mr King calling it a "nice little earner".
Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran opposed this year’s increase, warning that residents and businesses are effectively trapped until the long-delayed Lower Thames Crossing opens – not before 2032.
For now, all the evidence has suggested that the latest price hike is hitting motorists and hauliers in the pocket, who have been given no choice but to pay the higher charges.