The UK Government officially announced plans today to cut tolls on the Severn crossings by up to 75 per cent.
Cars, vans and small buses will pay just £3 when both bridges revert to public ownership in early 2018.
A public consultation is now underway seeking views on the introduction of a two-way “free-flow” charging system, similar to the Dartford Crossing, aimed at reducing congestion and journey times.
This would see toll barriers removed and a charge of only £1.50 each way on the M48 Severn Bridge and M4 Second Severn Crossing for cars, vans and mini-buses, with larger vehicles paying £5.
Toll charges currently only apply to westbound traffic entering Wales from England.
Under the proposals:
- Cars will pay £3; the current price is £6.70
- Drivers of vans and small buses will also pay £3, down from £13.40 – a reduction of more than 75 per cent
- Lorries and coaches will pay £10 instead of £20 – a 50 per cent reduction
- Those who use the Severn TAG cashless system will receive further discounts
The money raised through these new tolls will cover ongoing operation and maintenance costs of the two bridges, as well as future improvements.
A joint letter has been sent to all Welsh MPs and AMs by Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns and UK Transport Minister John Hayes.
They write: “We want to be clear that there is no intention to use the tolls for any purpose other than to support their operation and maintenance and to repay the debt incurred by the UK taxpayer to fix latent defects on the crossings.
“We can also assure you that the Government will monitor toll prices closely with a view to further reductions if possible in the future.
“We understand the importance of the crossings for both the Welsh and English economies and that they have benefited both Welsh and English road users for over 50 years.
“We believe that the approach set out in our consultation provides a sustainable approach and is a good deal for both users and the taxpayer in the decades to come".
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I am personally delighted by the news and agree with the Welsh Secretary’s comments that it shows Wales is “open for business”.
The Welsh Affairs Committee, which I chair, has been a longstanding champion of a reduction in toll charges. We scrutinised the future of the Severn crossings last year and previously published a report advocating lower tolls in 2010.
Of course, in an ideal world, I would like to see tolls scrapped altogether but I accept the ongoing maintenance costs of the bridges need to be covered. £3 is as good as it is going to get for the time being.
The main priority now is to ensure a proper handover plan is in place when the bridges are handed back to public ownership. Moving forward, the potential for installing an electronic pre-pay system using number plate recognition is a key issue as reducing the tolls is likely to increase traffic levels and could lead to even bigger queues on the toll plaza.
I would encourage as many people as possible to take part in the consultation and have their say.
You can read more about the proposals and respond to the consultation here. The deadline for submissions is 10 March 2017.