The great scandal of the Tamar Bridge – a principle road into Cornwall – is that motorists are faced with a seemingly unjust 50% rise and that some companies do not pay the toll at all!
In a letter recently published Andrew Vallance, the business manager of the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee, stated that ‘For some years, all stage omnibus services registered with the relevant Local Authority have not been charged for using the Tamar Bridge or Torpoint Ferry facilities.’
However, in March 2010 the Secretary of State for Transport was satisfied that the proposed rises(below) in tolls were ‘justified’.
The Secretary of State noted that the, despite the hard economic times, the rise was ‘appropriate and proportionate’. That is to say the Secretary approves of the 50% (inflation is around 4%) rise for motorists. It would be fair to suggest that such a rise was justified given the need to fund a cash reserve and to plan for the replacement of the Torpoint Ferries in 2025. Additionally, the Secretary of State was concerned about the depletion of the Joint Committees reserves at the rate of £300,000 a month.
Nevertheless, the need for the 50% rise does not toll (no pun intended) well with the governments other conclusion that the ‘Joint Committee’s operation appears to be well run’. This is, after all, the first toll increase since 1994. If the organisation is ‘well run’ why have they not raised tolls in line with inflation over the years? Yet, when we look through the accounts we see that in the financial year 2007/08 the committee had only a decefit for the year of £79,000. A farcry from the £300,000 a month that is now being lost.
Why, then, is there a sudden need to raise fees by 50%?
The Tolls:
(Source: Department of Transport, http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/statutorytolled/tollreviews/tamarbridge/doc/decisionletter.doc )
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