Eye-watering amount the M25 Dartford Crossing made from drivers in just one year
Motorists[1] are feeling the pinch with soaring insurance, fuel and repair bills and now new figures have shown drivers are spending more than GBP360million a year on tolls. A fresh rundown has exposed the nation's top-earning toll roads, with the M25 Dartford Crossing[2] leading the pack at about GBP209million - a jump from GBP202million the previous year, according to Moneybarn Car Finance Around GBP90m, is collected from account-paying motorists. The crossing, inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991, ditched its physical toll booths in 2014, switching to an online payment system.
Moneybarn saidd: "Interestingly, a large bulk of the bridge's income, GBP73m, comes from 'enforcement', meaning fines for those who have failed to pay." Drivers were initially told the tolls would be scrapped after two decades once the construction costs had been recouped. Yet, they were kept in place, sparking outrage among road users, reports Kent Live[3].
Table of the highest revenue toll roads (Moneybarn)
Moneybarn also revealed the M6 toll road is the second biggest earner, bringing in GBP53.7m annually. The firm said: "While it can be avoided by taking other routes, it's clear many are happy to pay the price for convenience, with the road netting its owners Midland Expressway Ltd over half a million pounds in 2020."
The Mersey Gateway, which connects Runcorn and Widnes in Cheshire, has been revealed as the UK's third most profitable toll road. It raked in over GBP40m from October 2020 to September 2021, according to the latest public figures. The term 'Mersey Gateway' actually refers to two bridges - the Gateway itself and the nearby Silver Jubilee Bridge, which was converted into a toll bridge to ease pressure on the former.
Other toll roads generating more than GBP10m annually include Yorkshire's Humber Bridge (GBP19.7m), the Mersey Tunnels (GBP14.3m), and Devon's Tamar Bridge (GBP10.7m). A recent study highlighted the significant disparity in toll charges across these routes. The M6 toll topped the list as the most expensive at GBP7 per car journey, followed by the Dartford Crossing at GBP2.50, with both the Mersey Gateway and the Tamar Bridge charging GBP2 each.
In stark contrast, Oxfordshire's charming Swinford Bridge charges just 5p for each crossing.