Kent County Council has awarded an £18.6M contract for construction of the Bean Road underpass, a short tunnel allowing Fastrack buses, pedestrians and cyclists to cross beneath the B255 Bean Road between the Whitecliffe development and Bluewater Shopping Centre.

The contract, for which five firms submitted bids, was won by Erith Contractors. It is part of the wider Fastrack programme, the county’s bus rapid transit network intended to support large-scale development in the Kent Thameside area.

The work comprises a new underpass roughly 75m long through the chalk spine under Bean Road. It will accommodate a 3.5m-wide bi-directional Fastrack busway and a combined footway/cycleway, forming a link between Whitecliffe, Bluewater and Ebbsfleet International railway station and contributing to the Ebbsfleet Garden City green corridor.

Estimated costs for the scheme have increased substantially since it was first budgeted. The original 2018 estimate was £13M, the council now puts the total scheme budget at £25.5M. The authority attributes the rise to post-pandemic cost pressures, higher material prices, inflation, the effects of the war in Ukraine and increased interest rates. The construction contract awarded to Erith covers £18.57M of that total (excluding VAT).

Kent County Council says the scheme is intended to provide a direct sustainable transport link as the Ebbsfleet area undergoes significant housing and commercial growth. Fastrack is central to the council’s strategy to reduce congestion and promote low-emission travel; the authority plans to operate fully electric buses on the network from April as part of a move to zero-emission services.

Planning permission for the underpass was originally granted in June 2020 but lapsed in June 2023. A fresh application made in August 2024 was approved on 6 March 2025. The county council published an intention to award the main works contract after tender evaluation and an updated construction programme is being prepared. Main construction is expected to start in early 2026, with completion anticipated in 2027.

Additional funding for the project has been provided through the Department for Transport’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) tranche 2, enabling the scheme to progress. Local bus services have already been adjusted in preparation: a new service linking Whitecliffe and Gravesend began in July 2024, rebranded as Route E in November 2024 and due to be extended to Bluewater and routed through the underpass when it opens.

Kent County Council first approved progression of the Bean Road Tunnel scheme on 29 July 2019 and issued a formal decision update on 2 September 2024.

The underpass is intended to integrate with wider Fastrack and local transport infrastructure as Ebbsfleet and surrounding areas continue to expand.

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