Debt fear on pay-as-you-drive

Some local authority leaders deny their arms are being twisted by the offer of additional cash to improve transport infrastructure if they support introducing road charging pilot schemes. But the Commons Transport Select Committee believes it is clear some feel they have no choice.

And the committee thinks pilot schemes, such as the one planned for the West Midlands, will not tell ministers and transport chiefs a great deal about the impact of a road pricing scheme.

The cross-party group of MPs said the availability of funds for much-needed improvements should not be restricted to only those councils willing to consider local road charging schemes.

The Transport Innovation Fund is the only substantial new money available to fund major congestion-tackling schemes.

The report said: "This risks blackmailing local authorities to conduct road pricing trials on behalf of a Government in advance of a possible national scheme.

"These projects are supposedly trials and experiments, but their costs are extremely high. In the cases of Greater Manchester and the West Midlands, £3 billion and £2 billion respectively, with debts lasting for up to 30 years.

"The failure of these projects would place a huge burden on the public purse.

"A range of town and city centre pricing schemes will not tell us a great deal about the impact of road-pricing on inter-urban routes and major trunk roads."

Transport chiefs in the West Midlands are asking for Government cash to improve public transport up front during the next five years to tackle congestion – and have not yet even decided whether to give road charging the green light, with the nuts and bolts of the scheme still being developed.

Research indicates congestion in the West Midlands will increase by 21 per cent by 2021.