Written evidence from Monmouthshire County
Council
— Monmouthshire County is the first County
in Wales accessed via both river crossings of the M4/M48 and as
such relies on the bridges for its access to markets and services
in the south and south west of England.
— The M4 is the primary route for commerce
from the southern part of England through Wales to Ireland which
passes through the county.
— Monmouthshire County is reliant for its
economic future on the access provided by the bridges.
— The tolls on the bridges are a deterrent
to businesses setting up in this part of Wales.
— The tolls are a deterrent to companies
retaining their activities in Monmouthshire.
— The tolls can have a negative effect
on tourism in the county especially the Wye valley but closure
and disruption to free flow of traffic and the consequential publicity
are also a detriment to tourism.
— There is concern that the cost of repairs
of the first Severn Crossing may force its closure.
1. IMPACT OF
THE TOLLS
ON THE
WELSH ECONOMY
INCLUDING BUSINESSES,
LOCAL RESIDENTS
AND TOURISTS
1.1 Tolling has been in place for so long that
the local economy has learnt to live with it. Whilst there is
little published research on the impact of tolls at a local level,
the views expressed reflect the feedback that the Council receives
from those businesses and residents who use the bridges on a regular
basis and are consequently most affected by the tolling regime.
1.2 Business
1.2.1 Monmouthshire County Council has held
various events and meetings with local businesses to ascertain
the views of local business on a range of matters. Those businesses
reliant on the bridges for their operations have reported that
tolls are of major concern, the results of which have to be built
into cost base calculations. This added cost makes it more difficult
for Welsh producers to be competitive. The tolls are effectively
an additional tax on companies doing business in Wales, and without
that cost, Welsh goods exported to the south and south west of
England would be more competitive.
1.2.2 Recently, Tesco announced that they are
to relocate their warehouse facility from Newhouse Park Chepstow
to Bristol. Press reports on the relocation do not mention tolls
as a determining factor. However the facility serves Wales and
the south and south west of England and with more stores in the
south and south west of England than in south Wales, tolls must
have been a contributory factor. Whilst the move in itself is
only approximately 10 miles from the existing facility, the consequences
of that move mean that employees living in Monmouthshire will
need to travel over the bridge from Chepstow incurring a £5.50
per day toll charge. With average weekly workplace earnings in
Monmouthshire being significantly lower than the national average
(Monmouthshire £403.90 compared to GB £490.20), this
extra cost puts an added burden on the household incomes of Monmouthshire
families reliant on jobs in the Bristol area. Newhouse Park has
also seen the loss of other large distribution depots for Littlewoods
and Nestle. Tolls were likely to have been a contributory factor
in their decision to relocate as well. To date those distribution
facilities have not been re-let indicating that whilst strategically
ideally placed, there are factors, potentially tolls, which have
a negative effect on relocation decisions.
1.2.3 At Magor, industrial development allocated
sites Wales 1 and Quaypoint have been difficult to develop with
Wales 1 being sluggish despite its great location right on a motorway
junction and Quaypoint has not moved at all, even with the access
road and roundabout put in at public expense. How much tolls influence
these development decisions is unknown due to the complexity of
the development process but again tolls must be a contributory
factor in company relocation decisions and if that decision is
finely balanced, tolls may well be the deciding factor.
1.3 Local residents
1.3.1 Monmouthshire has a high level of out
migration to work. The only definitive evidence of this is census
data which is now nearly 10 years out of date. The Council have
been told that those who use the crossings on a daily basis find
the tolls a high cost with no reduction—no season ticket
for example, so consequently residents need higher wages to work
in Bristol etc. Although residents can purchase TAG arrangements,
these are only cost effective if the bridge is used every day.
1.3.2 Traffic flows on the A48 through Chepstow
are higher than would otherwise be the case due to lorries and
other drivers using that route to avoid paying the high tolls
on the Severn bridges. This is detrimental to the environment
and in particular, air quality on Hardwick Hill, adversely affecting
local residents and potentially the tourism appeal of Chepstow.
1.4 Tourism
1.4.1 The Council is not aware of any specific
survey that has been done on the general impact of tolls on Monmouthshire
tourism.
1.4.2 A Tintern tourism related business reported:
"We do not have any fixed evidence as most
of our visitors during the holiday season are spontaneous; what
we can say with good general knowledge built up over the last
two decades and with the continual rise in the Severn Bridge toll
that our existing Bristol and South West customer base that visited
the Wye Valley as day trips or weekend trips has continually declined,
obviously preferring to look for places to visit within their
own catchment area and avoiding the toll charges".
1.4.3 Stories about bridge closures and big
delays can be damaging to the tourism sector. Recent closures
(for maintenance) of the original Severn Bridge made it more difficult
for visitors travelling on the M4 to access the Wye Valley. Businesses
in the valley perceive this to have had a direct and significant
impact on visitor numbers and spend in the destination. Current
reports on the cost of repairs to the first Severn Bridge give
rise to speculation that the bridge itself may actually be closed
which would have a further serious negative effect on local tourism.
2. CURRENT LEVELS
OF TOLLS
AND THE
AVAILABLE METHODS
OF PAYMENT
2.1 Levels of tolls are set out in the Severn
Bridges Act 1992 and are adjusted in line with the RPI increase
at a minimum rise of 10p per annum. Obviously those using the
bridge would like to see tolls reduced as this is an added cost
in seeking work in Bristol and the south and south west of England.
Commercial organisations find the current toll rate to be at a
level that it is a significant deterrent to doing business in
Wales.
2.2 Methods of payments need to be revised and
the decision to allow credit debit card payments in time for the
Ryder Cup is welcomed. This needs to be progressed further to
allow electronic payments linked to vehicle registrations, which
could be something on the line of London congestion charging methods,
to reduce delays at toll booths.
2.3 There is a need to hypothecate tolls to
maintenance costs so those paying the tolls can see that tolls
relate to the cost of provision rather than being another form
of indirect taxation.
3. THE CURRENT
CONDITION OF
THE BRIDGES
AND THE
COSTS ASSOCIATED
WITH ON-GOING
MAINTENANCE
3.1 Both bridges are vital for Wales' economy
and need to be kept open. The cost of repairs to first Severn
crossing are likely to be very great in the near future, if cables
need replacing. In times of great pressures on public expenditure,
it is likely that maintenance standards would decline leading
to more bridge closures and possible permanent closure of first
crossing. The delays or restrictions that congestion, wind or
ice can impose on the operation of the bridges have a negative
effect on business viability. These delays are unknown and unforeseen
but if they happen can have a serious effect on the business through
penalties in late delivery etc.
4. FUTURE OF
THE BRIDGES
AFTER THE
CROSSINGS HAVE
REVERTED TO
PUBLIC OWNERSHIP
4.1 No comment other than the points made above
in respect of the importance of road and rail links over and under
the Severn to the Welsh economy.
September 2010
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