87% of business supports road pricing

Graham Rawlinson and Julie Evans outside Brown’s No 1

A survey conducted by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has discovered that congestion is now so bad in the UK that 87 % of businesses support the principle of road pricing.
 
It is clear that business is at breaking point in the UK with the state of the road network.  A total of 82 % described it as essential to their business operations yet a staggering 84% said that there is a problem with road congestion that affects their business locally.
 
The main reason businesses cite for the congestion on local roads, A roads and the motorway network is the sheer volume of traffic (73%), with roadworks (53%) and poor road design and planning (50%) also being prominent.
 
Chambers of commerce are now calling on the government to guarantee that additional revenue raised by road pricing be kept separate from general transport expenditure and be used to improve the road network and public transport provision.  The BCC is also reissuing its call for a 30-year transport plan to provide strategic prioritisation of key projects and for regional transport boards to be set up jointly between the public and private sectors. 
 
Other findings of note from the transport survey are:

• 85% of businesses experienced increased operating costs as a direct result of the UK's transport infrastructure.  79% said they experienced a loss of man hours.
• The average added cost a year to a UK business due to UK transport infrastructure is £18,000.
• 27% of businesses claim that their use of rail transport has increased, rising to 44% of those based in London.
• Of those who are now using the rail network more, 74% say it is because the road network is too congested.
• Business does not consider high speed rail a priority.  The biggest improvement that business wants is reliability and punctuality.

Angie Robinson, chief executive of Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said: “ This survey shows that congestion has reached such a level in the UK that business is willing to consider road pricing, something unthinkable just a short while ago.
 
"The road network is still the most important for business yet the overwhelming majority say that road congestion is stifling their business.
 
"These results should not be seen however as an excuse to charge with one hand and still keep taking with the other.  If road pricing is to be introduced there must be reductions for business in road tax and fuel duty.  There must also be a guarantee that the additional money raised be not just put into the general transport pot but be spent on improving the road network and public transport."

"It is also interesting to note that businesses are not keen on high speed rail.  Reliability and punctuality are far more important and should be dealt with first before committing to spending a small fortune on faster rail travel."