DRIVERS at the Dartford Crossing will be hit with increased toll charges this week, but despite the hike local motorists have been slow to register for a 90 per cent discount.

Fares at the traffic hotspot are set to rocket by up to 50 per cent from Saturday. The new fees, which come into force from 10pm, mean private car drivers will have to fork out £1.50 per trip rather than £1, while charges for lorries will rise by almost 40 per cent, from £2.90 to £4.

A discount scheme for local residents, approved in June after a 12-month consultation, means Dartford drivers will pay just 20p per crossing if they take up the offer.

To qualify for a discount, motorists must pay an annual registration fee of £10, which covers the first 50 crossings in their specified vehicle and entitles them to a DART-Tag designed for their car windscreen.

But according to the Highways Agency, which is administering the scheme, only 6,144 residents have registered since July. And this also includes applicants from Thurrock, who are also entitled to the discount.

The Highways Agency said it could not break down the figures to show applications from Dartford, but according to the latest census figures, 46,000 households in Thurrock have at least one car, while in Dartford the figure is 38,000.

Meanwhile applications for standard DART-Tags have rocketed. Businesses in Dartford, who will not benefit from the local discount scheme, will be charged £1 per car or £3.20 per lorry if they own a tag. Drivers living outside the two boroughs, who will also miss out on the local discount, can also apply for a tag.

A Highways Agency spokesman said 7,325 applications for DART-Tags had been received since July, almost five times the usual volume for the same period, 1,500.

The spokesman added: “We are encouraging people to carry on coming and applying for the discount. The customer centre remains open even after November 15 so people can still go there and apply for the discount scheme.”

To apply for your discount visit the customer centre, next to the toll plaza, from 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday or until 7.30pm on Thursdays, call 01322 280200, or email admin@dart-tag.co.uk.