Tolls on both Severn bridges will be scrapped by the end of next year, the UK Government has announced.
Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns MP confirmed the move this morning at a meeting of Newport business leaders and said it would boost the South Wales economy by around £100 million a year.
He said: “The decision to abolish the Severn tolls next year sends a powerful message to businesses, commuters and tourists alike that the UK government is committed to strengthening the Welsh economy.
“By ending tolls for the 25m annual journeys between two nations, we will strengthen the links between communities and help to transform the joint economic prospects of South Wales and the south-west of England.
“I want to ensure that visitors and investors know what Wales has to offer socially, culturally and economically. Most importantly, I want the world to know how accessible we are to business.”
The scrapping of the tolls was an election pledge by the Tories and comes after the UK Government yesterday said it was abandoning the rail electrification scheme between Cardiff and Swansea.
Wales’ First Minister Carwyn Jones AM tweeted: “This is nothing but a desperate attempt by Alun Cairns to distract from yesterday’s U-turn on electrification to Swansea.”
The current tolls on both crossings are £6.70 for cars, £13.40 for vans, and £20 for lorries. Payable as motorists enter Wales on the M4, they have often been criticised as a tax on Wales.
Denise Lovering, chair of Caerphilly Business Forum and Managing Director of Bedwas-based Glenside Commercials, has long argued for the tolls to be scrapped.
She tweeted: “Great news for Welsh economy, well done to the team at Freight Transport Association. It’s been a long campaign.”
The two bridges, opened in 1966 and 1996 respectively, will be operated by Highways England when they return to public ownership next year. The Welsh Government had previously called for them to fall under its remit.
Severn Crossings plc was given the right to collect payments for 25 years as part of deal to build the second crossing in 1992.