Mersey Tunnel toll rise to pay for new Merseytravel office

Feb 2 2008

AN INCREASE in Mersey tunnel tolls will be used to fund new offices for tunnel staff, the Daily Post can reveal.

The 10p increase for motorists using the Wallasey and Birkenhead routes will directly pay for a £3.6m “harmonisation” programme set to bring all the tunnel staff under one roof, based in offices in Wallasey.

Merseytravel’s proposal yesterday to increase car charges from £1.30 to £1.40 has sparked fury, particularly from those living in Wirral where there are fears it will hit small businesses hardest.

Tolls for normal cars last went up in April 2005, again by 10p, with the total raised by the tunnels in 2006/7 being £34.7m.

According to a Merseytravel spokesman the extra income will pay for offices to accommodate administrative staff, tunnels police and engineering staff.

He said: “It will put all the staff on one side of the river and harmonise all tunnel staff, and that will cost £3.6m.”

A £4m capital programme has also been agreed for works to the tunnels next year.

The leader of Wirral council, Steve Foulkes, said he hoped all Wirral-based members of the Merseytravel committee who will vote on the issue on Monday would be “acutely aware of the adverse effect of increased tunnel tolls on the Wirral population”.

“By percentage we in Wirral are probably the biggest users of the tunnels. But this was part of the agreement that Merseytravel could increase tolls in line with inflation.”

He said Wirral’s tunnel users are also the biggest beneficiaries of the tunnels being well-maintained and these costs had to be paid for.

Wirral West MP Stephen Hesford described the proposals as “unacceptable” and Wirral South MP Ben Chapman said it would put the area’s businesses at a disadvantage “relative to those in other areas”.

Jack Stopforth, chief executive of Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, said he was “sorry to see any increase” in the costs for businesses moving goods. “Inevitably, those costs will be passed on to consumers. Liver- pool city centre is probably Wirral’s biggest employer, and companies are having a difficult enough time recruiting people and retaining them, and the added cost this increase means is an issue for the Chamber.”

The total debt owed on the tunnels is still £78.4m, down from £95m in 2005. Last year £11m was paid off on the debt and interest and next year £10.7m will be paid to service that debt.

Merseytravel said it would not comment about the proposals ahead of next week’s meeting, but a report on the planned increase said it was justified by the Merseyside Economic Review which reported a “sustained period of growth”.

The authority is also keen to prevent congestion in the tunnels by managing demand through the tolls.

The budget report says if prices do not rise the tunnels will become cheaper compared to alternative methods of transport.

The report also says Merseytravel could, in line with inflation, have proposed higher increases such as £1.50 for cars, but has chosen the lower level.

It has had the power to impose increases in tolls without a public inquiry since the passing of the Mersey Tunnels Act in 2004.

The Wirral branch chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, Paul Molyneux, said: “Whilst the majority of our members who use the tunnels drive vehicles which fall into the Class 1 category of tunnel toll, those with Class 2 vans and lorries face an extremely high increase.

“Many will be forced to pass this onto their customers in the form of higher prices, which reduces their ability to compete with businesses who don’t use the tunnels and bigger businesses who can more easily absorb the cost.

“For small businesses a car or van is not a luxury but an essential tool of the trade. I strongly urge Merseytravel to reconsider these proposals.”