Car drivers will have to pay �3 at peak times with a discount rate of �2 for the first ten million vehicles.

Lorries will be charged �11 and vans �5.

The �485m road will run from junction 4 of the M6 south of Birmingham via the north east of the city, then back to the M6 at junction 11 north of Birmingham.

Motorists will have the choice of staying on the M6 or switching to the toll road.

Do you think that the private motorway will take the pressure off Britain's existing roads? Could it be a start of similar developments around the country? Would you pay to use a motorway?

This debate is now closed. Read your comments below.

Your reaction:

The people are losing out Ricky, UK

I have read other peoples views on this issue, many are very good points and some I beleive are missing the point: the point is that we are already paying through the nose to maintain our roads and build new ones so why do we have to pay again when it's the government's job? The people are loosing out.
Ricky, UK

I believe that motorway charges would be incredibly beneficial to the congestion of Britain's roads. In France it has proven effective so why not? I sympathise with lorry drivers about the excessively high charges which should definitely be reduced or removed. In the long term paying to use motorways would reduce the numbers of vehicles on the roads and possibly encourage other methods of transport e.g rail.
Ian Manson, UK

Typical of this government. We pay tax, allegedly to pay for services provided by the state, but are then expected to pay when we use those services or, in this case, pay a private company to provide what the government has already been paid to provide.
Karl Peters, UK

Grow up all you whinging motorists. Driving a car is a privilege not a right, and it's one that costs the environment dear. Those who insist on driving everywhere should expect to pay the price.
Jane, Wales, UK

Imagine if we had to pay to get further education or quick hospital treatment having already coughed up so many taxes specifically for those services - oh, I forgot, we already do! Rose Marwood, UK

It's an absurd idea to tax motorists so heavily then expect them to pay to use a motorway - even a 'private' one. When we pay taxes we have a right to expect that the proper infrastructure will be provided by those funds. Imagine if we had to pay to get further education or quick hospital treatment having already coughed up so many taxes specifically for those services - oh, I forgot, we already do!
Rose Marwood, UK

Car Tax, Fuel Tax, now a road Tax, what will be next? Window Tax on cars? I now live in the US, I can fill my tank for less than half of what it cost me in the UK, so paying the odd toll isn't a problem. The tolls range from 50� - $2 (about 30p - �1.10) at any time.
Ian, Englishman in the US

Only about 30-40% of Road Tax actually goes back into the roads. But how much will a private company put back into the roads? No doubt they will firstly serve the shareholder then put the motorist second, as is always the case with the private sector.
Darren, UK

Bear in mind that French toll roads are not there to reduce congestion, there is little congestion on most of their roads - they are there to provide a faster road network, maximum speed 130 kph compared with 110 kph on the normal motorways. Secondly, why the complaint about caravans and trailers? The maximum speed for towing is 60mph, a mere 10mph below the national speed limit and 4 mph more than the speed limit for an HGV. Towed vehicles are also limited to the inside lane with the middle lane being the overtaking lane. All motor vehicles should use the inside lane where possible, with the outside lane used for overtaking only. �3-00, or 4.5 Euros, is about right for the total length of the new road, but is a little steep for shorter journeys, similar for HGVs.
John, UK

If you're not in a hurry use the old M6 and enjoy! Stella, UK

Where the M6 joins the M5 congestion is horrendous, queues can extend most of the way to Stoke/ Coventry and take hours to clear. The new road entirely by-passes Birmingham, saving well over an hour. Surely any right-minded business would rather pay �3 to save the time spent in traffic jams. If you're not in a hurry use the old M6 and enjoy!
Stella, UK

Governments have always seen the motorist as an easy target for taxes. We pay tax when we buy the car, we pay tax when we fuel the car, we pay tax to insure the car. The problem will come when these "congestion charges" have their desired effect and people ditch their vehicles. Then the problem will be how does the government make up the shortfall in taxes? As with the charge in London the only people who suffer are the people who have no choice but to use their cars.
Andy, UK

I have no problem with the introduction of toll roads, as long as there are alternatives and we are not forced to have to use these routes to get where we want to go, then it becomes a tax on our civil liberties
Tony, London

Why must it be a PRIVATE toll road? The successful toll roads in other countries are public enterprises. What will happen when major repairs are eventually required or changes needed such as widening, extra junctions, etc? As with railways, profits will be skimmed off and the PUBLIC will have to pay MAINTENANCE.
John M, LyneMeads,UK

I will pay it without complaint Phylis, UK

We pay many tolls in the USA, it helps the county or the state pay to fix the roads, build bridges, etc. I am in agreement to this new fee for the UK as long as they use the money wisely to help the communities. I will pay it without complaint.
Phylis, UK

Almost as many people seem to be moaning about this as did about the congestion charge. And like the congestion charge there is an alternative - use the free M6, now with less traffic.
Mark Davies, UK

It is about time that the UK government opened the books and demonstrated how the money that it collects from road and petrol tax is used.I believe that motorists would feel happier if it could be demonstrated that they were paying for a coherent transport and pollution policy. This is unlikely to happen as it would promote the sort of debate that the government seems so anxious to avoid. You do not have be a genius to work out that it is easy money for them and supports a low income tax strategy. Sadly, it seems to prove that when we look at our payslips we blame the state, when we pay high prices we blame someone else or just get used to it.
Colin, UK

If a privately paid-for motorway can provide less congestion then I am all for it, even if it does involve a modest charge. This works very well in the US and in France - let's go for it and may there be many more, very soon.
P. Powers, UK

In the face of the last 30 years of governments' failures to manage Britain's infrastructure - road, rail and air - it seems appropriate that private motorways should start to appear in this country.
Few complain about the tolls on French motorways since they are well-maintained, provide fast access to different regions and are well worth the price per mile (for the most part). In fact, Frances management of infrastructure in general (motorways, TGV and air) are far superior to those of this country - why?
Mary, Oxford, UK

I was compelled to drive to work because of South West Trains inability to run a train service. Give us a viable alternative first, then start charging.
Russ, UK

As long as there is a free option, I don't see much wrong with toll roads James Atkinson, UK

I suppose it gives an option for people in a hurry. As long as there is a free option, I don't see much wrong with toll roads. That might mean a caravan free road as well!
James Atkinson, UK

The Dartford River Crossing has been tolled for years. When the bridge was opened, it was promised that the tolls would be in force to pay for the bridge and set up a maintenance fund. Since April, the tolls have been removed and replaced with "road pricing" (the same thing) and despite trying to get freight to use it at night, I still sit in queues at 7am - yet again we are lied to.
Mark, UK

I think �3 is about right - less than a gallon of fuel. I must use about that sitting in the traffic jams on the M6 at the moment.
Gareth, UK

I already pay a road toll daily (Erskine Bridge), the drive to work takes me 45 minutes, however to get there by train would take 3 hours each way and 3 separate trains. There are no buses to go that route either. I wouldn't mind paying tolls if I had a sensible alternative though, like in the case of the new road in Birmingham.
Fiona, Scotland

So you are now having to pay to use a motorway that was paid for by private money and no taxpayers' money, fine no problem as long as the government then reduces the ridiculous level of tax on fuel as it won't need the income to fund new motorways.
Michael, England

Well, paying to use trains provides a fast, efficient service, doesn't it?
Pete Hazell, UK

Yet another example of the Government flipping its policies around and promoting road building instead of public transport subsidisation. Almost as contradictory as those people here who have said they want to pay less road tax/parking fees and drive on repaired and perfect roads - just where will the money come from? If drivers want to use the roads in these congested times then they should pay the price - or find a more sustainable way of travelling. Simple.
Franc Genna, London, UK

Should we pay to use a motorway? Of course. Should we pay twice? Of course not. That would be stupid wouldn't it?
Graham Shelton, England

I can't wait for it to open Chris, UK

As someone who will mostly be using this road on a Friday evening at peak time, I can't wait for it to open. I shall gladly pay my �3 to avoid the congestion. As far as I am concerned, the more people who complain about this charge the better. The road will be nice and empty for the rest of us.
Chris, UK

This may be a private motorway, but, once we're used to the idea of paying tolls, the government will charge them on public motorways.
caron, England

Get a grip everyone. It's a private motorway that you will be paying for, not a government tax. If you don't like it, don't use it - then maybe another company won't bother building one! The flipside of this issue is clear. The government really can't be bothered to sort out public transport or the road network whilst both sets of users pay out plenty of money in tax or fares.
Nick, UK

Surely this is not the first Motorway Toll, as the Severn crossing between Bristol and South Wales has been tolled for many years. If it speeds up my journey then �3 seems a reasonable price to pay.
Pete, UK

Discount for frequent users can help to make the cost of tolls more affordable Robert, New Hampshire, USA

Tolls are the fairest way of paying for roads - tax for proportional use. Some people gripe about tolls but good roads and road maintenance have to be paid for somehow and tolls make a great deal of sense. For me, paying tolls has not been a significant bother, except for the occasional backup at toll points on holiday weekends, and a system of discount for frequent users can help to make the cost of tolls more affordable and reasonable for them.
Robert, New Hampshire, USA

To Robert, New Hampshire. I would agree with you, except that we already have a HUGE proportional-use tax on our driving - fuel tax. In New Hampshire you pay less than $2 a gallon, in the UK we pay about $5 (yes five), the difference being TAX. We have already paid a fortune for our roads so additional tolls are unacceptable. Motorists contribute far more to the Exchequer than is spent on roads, we're bankrolling the whole nation!
Jon Cooper, uk

If the government has saved millions of Pounds getting others to build this Motorway, where has that saving gone? Probably to that other great success of privatisation called the Railway. If that wasn't in such a mess our road network may not be so bad.
Andy D, UK

In France the tolls mostly stop once you get near big cities, this is to stop diversion of traffic to busy minor roads. In England this is harder to do since big cities are closer together. So just because toll roads make sense in France does not mean they make sense here. Tourists and occasional users will no doubt be happy to pay the 3 pounds, regular users less so.
W Boucher, UK

How many more times will the British motorist have to pay to travel on roads? Jon Cording, UK

How many more times will the British motorist have to pay to travel on roads? Drivers pay council tax, a percentage of which goes to the roads, vehicle excise duty, paying to park outside their own homes, (where residents parking schemes are operated) and now, in London at least, congestion charging. Although motorway tolls are few and far between, they are increasing nonetheless. When will the final straw be drawn? The one that may push motoring Britain as a whole to revolt against it's department of transport masters?
Jon Cording, UK

At least foreign drivers will now contribute to the maintenance of our roads rather than being subsidised by the car tax payers. Especially the large number of continental lorries we see on the roads. The road fund should be reduced to cover the cost of maintaining and building minor roads and all major arteries (dual carriageways and motorways) should be subject to an electronic toll payable monthly by direct debit with an itemised bill. Or via a pre-pay system similar to mobile phones with hefty fines for deliberate evasion.
Joe, UK

Nobody is forcing anybody to use this road. The old M6 route will still be available at no extra cost. What should happen is a percentage of drivers will use the toll road, reducing the levels of traffic on the old M6. This should increase the overall speeds on the old M6 route. The only danger with this is that Tony Blair and Gordon Brown could use it a blue print to hike up the tax on the motorist. With the way new Labour work, I fully expect this to happen at some point
Anthony, UK

A little off-topic, but I've got a question I haven't seen answered yet. If this is a private motorway, are the speed limits legally enforceable?
James, UK

I assume that buses will be allowed to use the toll road for free Keith Burton, UK

I assume that buses will be allowed to use the toll road for free - the government wants us to use public transport more so it should not charge buses to use the route as this would increase the cost of using public transport, and discourage its use which is against government policy!!
Keith Burton, UK

Toll roads work in the US, where the tolls are frequently little more than a few cents per mile and there are usually alternatives for those who do not wish to pay. Payment is simple - when joining a toll road you take a ticket, and when leaving you pay based on the junction where you joined and the junction where you left. With this government's record I am very wary of seeing toll roads, as it is likely that there will soon be little option but to pay, and I expect the price to rise while the quality falls.
John B, UK

I am all in favour of road tolls if they discourage drivers from polluting the environment, or if the money is used to develop public transport, but by involving private companies in road building I am frightened that our road networks will grow to accommodate even more vehicles.
Marcus, England

The motorways were clear and in superb condition Richard, UK

I drove up from the South of France paying at tolls every few miles. The motorways were clear and in superb condition and the whole 800 mile journey took me no more than 11 hours. Contrast that with joining the motorways in the UK after landing at Dover. Our roads were simply awful in comparison.
Richard, UK

Having recently lived in Australia I want to relate a problem with multiple toll-roads. Each operator will have their own system of e-tolling. Before long your windscreen has more electronics stuck to it than Dixon's sale. I hope and trust the government will be enforcing a single standard and common payment system for the M6 relief as, say, for the Dartford River Crossing? Or am I hoping for too much?
Alex Marshall, England

So we have to pay to use a stretch of road that the government should really have provided us with. Do they not make enough out of the road taxes and fuel taxes that we are charged? I find it incredible that in a country where its people are amongst the highest taxed in Europe, that we are being asked to pay for something as essential as using the infrastructure of the country!
James Stevens, Wales

Charging for motorways will just force more traffic onto minor roads, increasing congestion and inconvenience. Instead, we should use the vast sums raised in road and petrol taxes to subsidise public transport.
Malcolm, England

the money will need to be raised from somewhere DF, UK

So the poor old motorists are complaining about being made to pay for the impact of the motorcar. Why oh why do they think that driving a car should a be a zero cost activity (apart from the insurance, tax, & fuel)? Yes our public transport should be much better than it is - but the money will need to be raised from somewhere. Yes I am a car owner, and no I do not have a problem with having to pay more for the privilege.
DF, UK

I leave the M6 when travelling South at junction 8. �3 for 15 miles? Forget it. I might consider it if the rate were �1.
Miland Joshi, UK

I travel this route to work each day and fear that the old roads will be made difficult to use, therefore I will face a �1,500 per year increase in my cost of getting to work. I was hoping for a discounted season ticket.
Steve Hodgetts, England

Is the revenue generated from this new toll being re-invested back into our roads ? Or is it to benefit shareholders of MEL? I assume now we pay "tolls" we will have our road tax reduced, or eliminated completely.
James, UK

Although I understand that this is a private road, it seems strange to me how little the government understands infrastructure. Our roads form a hugely important part of our industry's supply chain and hence our economy. We should be helping our businesses by freeing up the supply chain, not putting costly barriers in the way. It seems to be the only way we can now gain a competitive advantage over European rivals.
Jeremy, UK

You're not being compelled to use this road Dave, UK

What's with all the whinging? You're not being compelled to use this road - this is the wonderful free market in all its glory. If you want "first class" you are going to have to pay �3 for it, the same as rail and air passengers have to!
Dave, UK

Tolls should be time-sensitive. HGVs and vans should be charged high fees during rush hours to keep them off the routes. �11 for an HGV is a pittance compared to the damage they do vs a car. If a car pays �5, an HGV should be paying �5000, as studies show an HGV causes 1000x more damage to the road than a car. Too expensive? Use railfreight!
Tim, England

First we pay road fund licence, then we pay more tax for every litre of fuel we buy, and now we pay to access the roads. Why not tax breathing as well why they are at it?
Duncan, UK

You'd only use them when you needed to get somewhere quickly Andy, UK

I'd pay to drive on motorways if they increased the speed limit on them at the same time. If you had to pay, you'd only use them when you needed to get somewhere quickly.
Andy, UK

So, which MP is on the board of the company that is building the road? Also, which MPs got the nice backhanders by providing permission for it to go ahead? Nothing happens in this country unless an MP gets a slice of the action.
Geoff Hirst, Scotland

We pay BILLIONS in tax, have the most expensive fuel (through taxation) and now this. I agree that people use their cars too much, but I don't agree in being charged for absolutely anything I do. How do countries like Germany and Holland cope? There is good public transport and the usage of roads is free. If a perfect public transport system was an alternative then there might be a case, but not at the moment!
Volker, England (ex Germany)

Why are motorists claiming that this a new form of taxation? It's a PRIVATE motorway - built for profit - don't you get it yet??
Mark, UK

It works in France OK - difference being all the monies raised goes back into the roads and the speed limit is higher making it more attractive for longer journeys. There are also plenty of rest-stops for drivers.
Greg Jenkins, UK

We already pay enough in taxes Diana Shanks, Scotland

I think it's absolutely shocking how they try to get more and more money out of us. We already pay enough in taxes. If our tax money was used wisely, they wouldn't have to be so "creative" about how they much more they can empty our pockets!
Diana Shanks, Scotland

I think toll motorways are just another way to tax the motorist. The economy of this country is suffering because of poor roads and congestion and tolls will not solve the problem, they will drive cars and lorries off motorways and onto other roads.
Andy, England

Yes I would pay if they abolish road tax.
Louise Callaby, England

Providing that the motorist has a viable alternative to toll roads, then the system should work. Anyone who has driven the roads in Southern Spain will have seen how it works in practice - busy, slower but "free" roads running alongside better maintained, virtually empty, "pay" roads. The choice therefore is with the motorist and no-one is forced to pay. I strongly suspect that this will NOT be the case when the government introduces toll roads to Britain!!
Sally Marshall, UK

I know that paying for services we use is a strange notion for many in this small island, but it is shame that the transparency and fairness of this is not used in other areas of public service provision.
Paul, UK

Moo, moo. This motoring cash-cow is beginning to feel a little over milked.
Steve, UK