Glos takes brunt of toll dodgers
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• January's 10% rises in Severn Bridge tolls pushed more trucks on to minor roads in Gloucestershire, bringing the threat of traffic restrictions closer.
In April the county council measured a 200-truck-per-day increase over six mouths earlier as drivers chose the A48 to avoid tolls. An extra 100 were counted on the A40 and 130 more on the B4215.
The findings outraged councillors, who are going to increase pressure on the Department of Transport to do something about the .01.10 one-way charge levied by the operator, Severn River Crossings.
The councillors want the DOT to fund a study on returning to two-way tolling but Severn River refuses to consider the idea because there is too little room to build tolling booths.
The Government is talking to Cardiff University researchers who are working with Gwent County Council on a survey of the effects of tolls.