ABSTRACT
Based around a case study of the difculties in planning and building a new East Thames road crossing, this chapter’s focus exemplies the problematic planning and development process in Britain. Even in the case of the Thames Gateway – a regional designation which was set up partly in order to obviate some of the problems of the planning structure – the planning process can be long drawn out and cumbersome not only because of the various local and central government organisations involved in it but also because, it is generally agreed, any planning procedure needs to address the wishes of individuals and local and national interest groups, such as, locally, the people who live near any area of proposed development, and nationally – and, increasingly, globally – the changing interests of transport and power users, and environmental groups, each of whom may bring opposing holistic philosophies to the table in any discussion of a proposed new development. The views of these interest groups are important factors in the outcome, and yet we should always remember that the planning process is overseen by central government, and here too there are signicant changes to register in any story ranging, as this one does, over the best part of thirty years. In a nutshell, planning is political, and any assessment of the outcomes of the planning process has to be written within the context of shifting political power and ambition.
