M6 Toll: Give users a better deal, says South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson

South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson has called on Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin to make it easier for the toll to be suspended in the case of a major incident.

Talks are taking place with the M6 Toll operators Midland Expressway over 'Operation Freeway' which allows the paid-for motorway to be opened in times of crisis but comes at a cost of £300,000.

The present deal expires on Thursday.

Mr Williamson said: "I have spoken with the Secretary of State for Transport regarding this deal which frankly I do not think offers the best of deals to the taxpayer.

"But what is more concerning is that the levers to open up to M6 Toll in the case of a major incident are too difficult.

"I am still hammering home to him that the structure is not the right one and we are not getting value for money for the West Midlands economy."

Currently the Transport Secretary has the power to suspend tolls temporarily on the M6 Toll. West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson has suggested that power be transferred to local politicians, the police, or Highways England bosses in the West Midlands.

Mr Williamson added: "The whole system is too bureaucratic and takes too long. Something has to be done to get the West Midlands economy flowing when there is a major incident so Staffordshire, the Black Country and beyond can benefit."

Mr Williams had previously taken the extraordinary step for a Conservative MP in calling for the M6 Toll to be nationalised.

A M6 Toll spokesman said: "Operation Freeway is an agreement which allows tolls to be temporarily suspended on the M6 Toll in the event of a major failure of infrastructure on the strategic road network in the West Midlands. The original agreement for Operation Freeway will end on March 31, 2016 and Midland Expressway Limited is already engaged in positive dialogue with Highways England and the Department for Transport about extending or renewing this agreement."

The M6 Toll has been put up for sale by the banks that own it in a bid to get back the £1.9 billion they are owed.

They believe that the recent improving performance of the UK's only private motorway could make it a good time to sell.

In its last set of financial figures, for 2014, toll operating company Midland Expressway cut its losses to £28.6 million, from £32.5m the year before. And traffic numbers have been improving.

The toll road, which currently charges cars £5.50 and lorries up to £11, has never reached the 75,000 vehicles a day predicted when it was first opened in 2003. But the daily average has now risen to nearly 48,000 a day, with 17.4 million vehicles using the road during 2015.

The road has been owned by consortium of 27 lenders, including French bank Credit Agricole, German group Commerzbank and Portugal's Novo Banco, since a major debt restructuring move in 2013.

It saw them take over ownership from Macquarie, the Australian group that built the road. The banks now pay Macquarie a fee to run the road through its Midland Expressway company, which has the contract to operate and maintain the M6 Toll until 2054.