Government will learn lessons from M6 toll before introducing charging on A14

Transport Minister Stephen Hammond has told councillors in Cambridgeshire that the government would learn lessons from the M6 toll before another charge was introduced along the A14.

According to papers released under the Freedom of Information Act, Hammond told Cambridgeshire County Council that businesses would "significantly" benefit from the fuel savings and journey time reliability provided by a toll road and that he was keen to sell these benefits.

In notes to a meeting that took place on 24 January, Hammond said he hoped to announce a definite timescale for building a toll road in September and that it was vital to analyse what level of charge should be applied.

A report commissioned for the Department for Transport (DfT) in November 2012 suggested that a £2 charge for LGVs (£1 for cars and vans) on the A14 would be best for delivering economic benefits, while also generating revenue.

However, Road Haulage Association policy director Jack Semple said it was "broadly opposed" to charging:

"We would want to see the details before making a final view, [but] it makes haulage more expensive, more administratively burdensome and creates the potential for a proliferation of local tolling schemes," he said.

A DfT spokeswoman said no decisions had been made, adding: "the model and what it will look like will depend on local funding contributions."

Hammond has already assured hauliers that they won't be forced to use tolled sections of the A14 via the imposition of weight restrictions on surrounding routes if the scheme goes ahead.

The image shows Orwell Bridge, Ipswich, the route of the A14 as its heads south towards the proposed toll section in Cambridgeshire.