Ninety-one per cent of motorists do not trust the government to reinvest money made from tolls on new roads, according to a survey by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

Sixty per cent of motorists do not support toll roads, and seventy-nine per cent of motorists would not support the introduction of tolls on existing roads. Forty per cent of motorists would back more expensive tax discs instead of charging tolls on roads. Forty-one per cent wouldn’t support toll roads even if other types of tax were reduced.

IAM Chief Executive Simon Best said:  “The cost of motoring is currently at an all-time high, and it’s clear that the idea of bringing in toll roads has no support among everyday motorists. A toll on motorways, our safest roads, may force motorists on to more dangerous rural roads, to save money. The government has a very hard job ahead to convince drivers that tolls are the only way to deliver new roads and improve existing ones. Only by reducing other motoring taxes can this policy gain the support of the motorist.”

PM Calls for more private investment

Speaking in London on 19 March David Cameron said:  “We need to look urgently at the options for getting large-scale private investment into the national roads network. “We now need to be more ambitious. Why is it that other infrastructure – for example water – is funded by private-sector capital through ­privately owned, independently regulated, utilities but roads in Britain call on the public finances for funding?”