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nnels II stays
Page 21
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[OIL CHARGES on the Meriey tunnels will remain at their resent levels, following the 3o ernment's rejection of s for Exchequer assist Merseyside Chamber of Cotnmerce wanted Transport Mi ister Norman Fowler to eas the burden of the capital de t on the newer Kingsway• tunnel, saying that Merseyside's problems were unique. 'jMerseyside is the only major community in the UK in w ich tolled estuarial crossings form the vital arteries linking its community. Others merely link separate communities which, in many instances, have alternative routes available to them."
Tolls in the Queensway Tunnel were due to end with the writing off of its debt in 1974, but the Kingsway tunnel changed that.
Mr Fowler told the chamber th t any Exchequer assistance w uld be in direct conflict w-th cuts in public expenditu e, and pointed out that u rs of tolled crossings derive e ceptional benefits from th m.
'It is only right that they, • r ther than the taxpayers, should pay for these benefits," he said.
He added: "Whether or not tl-e local authorities should sthsidise users out of rates is a matter for the local authority to decide."