Toll boost for roads
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• Cash raised by motorway charging may be spent on the roads, but there is no question of this principle—known as hypothecation—being applied to vehicle excise or fuel duty.
Speaking at last week's Freight Transport Association's annual conference Transport Secretary John MacGregor said he "might believe in hypothecation of tolls, but not taxes.. we cannot have hypothecation—it would not establish the right priorities for public expenditure."
Hypothecation of tolls would make the proposals outlined in the recent Green Paper, Paying for Better Motorways, more palatable to hauliers. The consultation document estimates that motorway charging could raise up to £750m a year, depending on the method of charging adopted. Hauliers will pay 10% of this figure under the permit system and 33% under the electronic charging system.
"We are spending record levels on roads and we cannot sustain our borrowings, that is why we need another source of finance," said MacGregor.