Taking its ton
Page 8
Page 9
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Charging hauliers for using the A14 in Cambridgeshire could have far-reaching consequences for those involved in transporting freight out of Felixstowe port By Chris Tindall
IMPOSING A TOLL along a new stretch of the A14 in Cambridgeshire would amount to a tax on haulage firms specialising in container transport out of Felixstowe, says Suffolk's highways chief. As the Highways Agency (HA) mulls over the responses to its consultation into building a 12-mile Huntingdon Southern Bypass and charging LGVs £3 for using it, businesses across the region are concerned that the move will hurt the local economy. With an estimated one in 10 jobs in Suffolk directly dependent on Felixstowe port, and a heavy reliance on
the A14 by its users, companies in the county have been particularly vocal in their opposition to the plan.
Graham Newman, Suffolk County Council Cabinet member for transport, says haulage firms in Norfolk and Essex have access to alternative roads, but those in Suffolk don't.
"It's trying to get people to realise it's a tax on Suffolk and on Suffolk businesses, especially our ports and logistics businesses," he says. "The issue is the others haven't got to pay it."
Newman believes UK ports and shipping lines are already talking about moving out of Felixstowe, and warns that this could lead to a drop in employment. It's a claim rejected by the port itself, but container hauliers aren't convinced.
"It isn't good news for anyone, not just hauliers," says Paul Dawson, MD at Deben Transport. "It will cause a lot of hardship. Shipping lines will look at alternatives." Container haulier Goldstar Transport MD Matthew Ashworth says he is not against toll roads in theory, but it
is essential there is an alternative route for drivers as well. The suggestion by the HA that it would de-trunk the existing A14, put a weight limit on the road, and demolish a road viaduct over a mainline railway at Huntingdon, has not gone down well.
Road Haulage Association (RHA) policy director Jack Semple says: "It is particularly concerning given the competition [between] Felixstowe and other ports. The government is effectively creating something akin to an estuarial crossing in the middle of the Cambridgeshire flatlands, and creating a toll you have to use.
"The costs of going into the East Midlands and West Midlands and beyond will be increased and charges to customers will be increased. It will be negative for our members in East Anglia and bad for the economy as a whole, as well as businesses and employment." Campaigns
The RHA has launched a campaign opposing the proposed plans, while the Suffolk Chambers of Commerce (SCC) has launched its own campaign — No Toll Tax On Suffolk.
"There is no doubt that tolling of the A14 will have a detrimental impact on business and the economy of Suffolk," says John Dugmore, SCC chief executive. "Tolls on the A14 would be discriminatory, adding costs to businesses in Suffolk that are not faced by businesses elsewhere."
So far, Suffolk-based businesses have been shouting the loudest about their opposition to a toll, but some hauliers in Cambridgeshire are not impressed either.
"We pay enough tax as it is, in road tax and tax on fuel," says Derek Claridge, transport manager at J&D Transport in Little Eversden. "In the beginning, that's why people paid road tax; to keep roads up to date and repaired. With all the cars on the roads now the revenue from road tax must be phenomenal. If I can avoid using it, I will. There are routes around it, but they will probably get even more congested." Jonathan Djanogly, MP for Huntingdon, says his constituents are worried about roads becoming rat runs. In his response to the HA's consultation, he states: "The way weight restrictions will be used on minor roads will be important to stop LGVs going through villages, if not
the A428 and the A1123."
The chief executive of Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce, John Bridge, says opposition to a fuel escalator has meant the government is forced to look for new ways to increase taxation. "All political parties are obsessed with not raising funds through direct taxation, leaving them to look for other tax-raising mechanisms such as tolls, which they can introduce under the pretext that it's for the benefit of road users," he says.
The government is unlikely to be swayed by the argument that the tolls are a tax on business.
In a recent House of Commons debate, transport minister Robert Goodwill said it would be a no-brainer for hauliers to pay up and stay on a free-flowing road.
He added: "Tariffs will therefore be kept as low as possible, with light vehicles being expected to pay around £1 or £1.50 at current-day prices and heavy vehicles paying around double that cost. "It is anticipated that tolls will be charged seven days a week, but that overnight trips will be free. That may encourage some commercial operators to use the road at night when it is expected to be less busy." •