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Introduction

Kent is a county in the South East England region, the closest county to continental Europe. It borders Essex across the entire estuary of the River Thames to the north; the French department of Pas-de-Calais across the Strait of Dover to the south-east; East Sussex to the south-west; Surrey to the west and Greater London to the north-west. The county town is Maidstone.

It is the fifth most populous county in England, the most populous non-metropolitan county and the most populous of the Home Counties, an area influenced by the capital such as commutes and transport connections to the capital. Twenty-eight per cent of the county forms part of two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty: the North Downs and The High Weald. (Full article...)

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Aerial view of the crossing looking northward. The toll booths were replaced by electronic charging barriers in 2014.

The Dartford–Thurrock River Crossing, commonly known as the Dartford Crossing and until 1991 the Dartford Tunnel, is a major road crossing of the River Thames in England, carrying the A282 road between Dartford in Kent in the south and Thurrock in Essex in the north.

It consists of two bored tunnels and the cable-stayed Queen Elizabeth II Bridge. The only fixed road crossing of the Thames east of Greater London, it is the busiest estuarial crossing in the United Kingdom, with an average daily use of over 130,000 vehicles. It opened in stages: the west tunnel in 1963, the east tunnel in 1980 and the bridge in 1991. The crossing, although not officially designated a motorway, is considered part of the M25 motorway's route, using the tunnels northbound and bridge southbound. Described as one of the most important road crossings in Britain, it suffers from heavy traffic and congestion.

The crossing's development started in the late 1930s, but was interrupted due to the Second World War and resumed in the 1950s. The original tunnel catered for a single lane of traffic in each direction, but rising traffic levels required the second tunnel to be built. The M25 connected to the tunnels at both ends when completed in 1986, and the increased traffic put pressure on the tunnels' capacity. A private finance initiative scheme was started in 1988 to build the bridge. The combined crossing now handles four lanes of traffic in each direction.

The crossing has always been tolled, and though the cost of construction has since been paid back, the toll was retained, and rebranded as a congestion pricing scheme from 1 April 2003. Since 2008 it has been free from 10 pm to 6 am. An automatic number plate recognition charging scheme named the "Dart Charge" began in November 2014. As a result, the booths on the Kent side were removed and the charge is now only payable online, by post, or in participating retail outlets. A residents' scheme is available, offering discounts for people living near the crossing.

The crossings are operated by Connect Plus Limited on behalf of National Highways as part of a 30-year Design-Build-Finance-Operate agreement that began in 2009. (Full article...)


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Portrait attributed to Daniël Mijtens, c. 1627

William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions to anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, pulmonary and systemic circulation as well as the specific process of blood being pumped to the brain and the rest of the body by the heart (though earlier writers, such as Realdo Colombo, Michael Servetus, and Jacques Dubois, had provided precursors to some of his theories). (Full article...)

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Join the WikiProject Kent: Any help on the Kent project would be gratefully received, even if only on your local area of expertise. FAQ about editing Ask the project a question here

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Districts in Kent

Kent is divided into 12 local authority districts and Medway Unitary Authority.

  1. Sevenoaks
  2. Dartford
  3. Gravesham
  4. Tonbridge and Malling
  5. Medway
  6. Maidstone
  7. Tunbridge Wells
  8. Swale
  9. Ashford
  10. City of Canterbury
  11. Folkestone and Hythe
  12. Thanet
  13. Dover
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Did you know...

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Did you know...


On this Day - November 21st

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The County

At the time of the 1831 census, Kent was the 10th largest county, covering 972,240 acres (3,934.5 km2), however by 1871 it had grown to 995,344 acres (4,028.01 km2) and became the 9th largest.

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Associated Wikimedia

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