Toll plans unveiled for A14
18 July 2012
The Department for Transport has announced it is to build new sections of the A14 in Cambridgeshire, funded by tolls.
A new bypass to replace the existing road around Huntingdon and upgrades to the existing highway could begin as early as 2018.“Study work has confirmed that funding for these can be generated in part through tolling a length of the enhanced A14,” the department said.
“However, more work will be taken to determine the best tolling solution, including what length the tolled section should be, how users would pay and what the tariff should be.”
The projects will enter the department’s roads programme, with detailed design and statutory processes being launched.
One expert suggested the government’s plans could see the existing route from Huntingdon to Cambridge being tolled, with a new road for local traffic being built either side of the existing highway, and treating the existing one as the ‘new road’ by demolishing its connections to interchanges.
That could allow for more tolling on roads than the government’s previous statements have suggested. Prime Minister David Cameron has previously said only new roads will be tolled.
