Midland Expressway Limited has today increased the toll for driving on the M6, cementing its status as the UK’s most expensive road toll.
From now on, car drivers will have to pay £6.90 to access the road in the West Midlands, an increase of 20p over the previous charge. A return journey in a car will cost £13.80, meaning drivers who pass though the toll every weekday could pay up to £3615 a year.
The increase means that the M6 remains the most expensive toll in the UK. Now almost triple the cost of the Dartford Crossing, the next most expensive, which charges £2.50 for access, the M6 toll is seven times costlier than crossing the Clifton Suspension Bridge.
Leasing expert Leasing Options noted that it would cost the equivalent of four tanks of petrol to travel through the toll for a month.
Leasing Options boss Mike Thompson said: “While some people have no other option to use these roads, it’s staggering the amount these toll charges can add up to when used on a daily basis.
“Our research shows that on average over the year, a commuter could pay £1264.15 [on toll roads across the UK]. That’s 3.5% of the average UK salary, which is a big amount to fork out over the year. The convenience can be great for the occasional user, but we feel it’s a big cost to take for some people with little other choice.”
Autocar has contacted Midland Expressway Limited for comment.
Introduced in 2003, the M6 toll spans 27 miles between Cannock and Coleshill. It was hailed as a way of relieving pressure on the congested motorway, but the move was controversial. Traffic on the motorway grew 4.5% in 2017; on average, 50,030 vehicles used it per day.
When it first arrived, the M6 toll for cars was £5.50, £1.40 less than it is today. However, this increase is quite a bit less than the rate of inflation. According to the Bank of England, if the toll had increased in line with rises of other goods and services, it would be closer to £9.
Despite the M6’s tolls controversy, the model could be about to be rolled out more widely as the government considers a road-pricing scheme to help fill the tax shortfall caused by the gradual switch to EVs. This switch has been accelerated by the announcement of its 2030 ban on the sale of new pure-ICE cars. Some hybrids will be allowed until 2035.
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This article is hilarious! It's made my day so far.
All the helpful maths and the comparissons with Dartfod and Clifton! So funny. Of course it's more: you're using more, it's 43 kilometers long. What's the Dartford Crossing? 2 miles? Clifton? Thousand feet? "Shall we take the M6 Toll?" "No, let's go via Clifton, it's seven times less costlier". Lol. Stupid comparisson.
"Autocar has contacted Midland Expressway Limited for comment". So? What kind of comment? "Yes, we've put our prices up as many businesess do the world over. Deal with it. Now, off you pop champ".
Thanks, Will. Made a grey Friday a little more bright.
Since the work on the M5/M6 upgrades are mostly done the toll road has gone back to being a quiet back route for people with a company expenses policy, anyone else doesn't need it. Which is why they can get away with keep hiking prices, drivers just pass it on to employers.I am in this category and have had a tag account for many years, it makes my life easier I can just set cruise and lane assist and cruise in peace. Although curiously 70% of other users hog the middle or outside lane even with a deserted inside lane, the police should take the easy pickings of fining as its an offence now.
Talking of police, a lot of muppets seem to think its a safe place to give it the beans. Quite the opposite, the police love it as its easy to spot speeders and safer to stop them on a deserted motorway. I couldn't count the number of cars I have seen on the hard shoulder with a Blue light flashing BMW parked behind over many years, 80% stopped seem to be Audi's funny enough.
Back to cost, I do think they are pushing their luck, there will come a point when employers say nope, you can't use it any more, too much.It would be better to drastically reduce prices and try and drastically increase volume rather than milking the few faithful over and over. Set the cost to £2 and see how busy it gets, if too busy tweak the prices up to regulate volume.