Projects · Essex and Kent ·
Lower Thames Crossing: a contractor's guide to staying in Thurrock
The Lower Thames Crossing is a new 14.3-mile road between Kent and Essex, with 2.6 miles of twin tunnel under the river between Gravesend and East Tilbury. National Highways began early works in March 2026, tunnelling is due to start in 2028, and the road is expected to open in the early to mid 2030s.
Where the work is
The first compounds are at East Tilbury on the Essex side and at Thong, near Gravesend, in Kent. The main contractors are Bouygues Travaux Publics with Murphy on the tunnels, Balfour Beatty on the roads north of the Thames and Skanska on the Kent roads.
National Highways has estimated that more than 22,000 people will work on the project over the build, and says almost half will be recruited within twenty miles. The specialist trades come from further away, and they arrive in a borough that already houses the workforce of the Port of Tilbury and London Gateway, which is itself in the middle of a £1 billion expansion.
Drive times to the East Tilbury compound
- East Tilbury, Chadwell St Mary and Stanford-le-Hope: under 10 minutes.
- Tilbury and Grays: about 13 minutes.
- Basildon and Benfleet: about 17 minutes.
- South Ockendon and Aveley: about 20 minutes.
- Dartford, Gravesend and Southend: 25 to 35 minutes.
House or hotel
For a stay of more than a week, a whole house usually works out better for a crew: a kitchen, a washing machine, a driveway for the van and one invoice for the house rather than one per room. We have houses in Tilbury, Benfleet and South Ockendon within twenty minutes of the works, and we are taking on more across south Essex and north Kent.
