For whom the tolls mean tax-free profits

The M6 Toll is a moneyspinner for its offshore owners but unloved by motorists, says Neil Collins. Is it really the best model for road-building without taxpayers’ money?

Drive south down the M6 towards the Midlands and you pass an illuminated sign at junction 15. If you’re lucky, it will display the following message: ‘To J8 for M5, 34 miles, 34 minutes’. A couple of junctions further on, you can’t miss a similar sign with the message: ‘M6 Toll clear’. Ah, you say to yourself, that’s all very fine, but I’m not a boy racer looking to do a ton and get away with it. The earlier sign effectively tells me there’s no point in investing £4.70 to drive what may be the world’s most expensive 27 miles of dual carriageway, because I know there is no jam at the start of the M5.

It would be too much to hope that this is the revenge of the public authorities for the cash cornucopia the M6 Toll has been for its owners, but the recession has taken its toll (sorry) on the value of this piece of road, and that sign at junction 15 will have done a bit more to drive (oh dear) the traffic away.