KENT Police and the roads minister Dr Stephen Ladyman have agreed to assess proposed safety measures on the newly-opened Sheppey Crossing.

This comes after the force’s chief constable Mike Fuller sent a letter to the Department for Transport raising concerns about the fact there is no lighting, no hard shoulder and no emergency telephones on the 1.25km stretch of the A249 which links mainland Kent with the Isle of Sheppey.

Mr Fuller said he had raised the concerns about safety in response to fears voiced by local people. “It would be irresponsible and unprofessional of me not to act on these concerns,” he stressed.

The Highways Agency have said that a safety audit was carried out of the new road and crossing before it opened which confirmed that it was fit for use.

The £100million bridge was opened on July 3 by Dr Ladyman.

THE SHEERNESS TIMES GUARDIAN WILL BE EXPRESSING ITS VIEW OF THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS OVER THE CROSSING IN THIS WEEK'S ISSUE. WHAT DO YOU THINK? HAVE YOUR SAY BY CLICKING ON TO OUR SPEAKOUT