Tolls

[audiorob]

How about european legislation to reduce pollution and fuel waste, as well as personal frustration in peak time queues for tolls? A clear example must be the M25 crossing, the cost of fuel wasted far exceeding the cost of the toll. How about sensors placed in the road to repsresent a 20 minute wait, so once traffic exceeds this point the toll gates are opened for free passage? It would also greatly help on the French holiday routes on peak weekends, where there is no apparent urgency to process vehicles once it's your turn to smile and hand over the cash! At one point we waited nealy an hour to throw _1 in a basket!

 

[Lutz]

Why are you asking for European legislation? We don't have any tolls for cars and light trucks here in Germany so you're hardly going to find anyone here prepared to give you much support. Heavy trucks pay their toll using on-board units, so they never need to stop to pay. There has been discussion to extend tolls to cover all vehicles here, but if it does come, it will also be using on-board units, so there won't be any traffic jams.

 

[Chrisbee]

The M25 toll was supposed to be a charge to recoup the cost of building the tunnel/bridge. Once the cost was recovered it was going to be free to cross. The debt was paid off a couple of years ago but the toll remained, reclassified as a 'congestion charge'.

The only cause of congestion is the queue for the toll booths. A self generating cash cow if ever there was one.