# M6 toll rip off



## richard863 (May 1, 2005)

Used the M6 toll last Friday at the southern end I notice my class 5 had gone up to £8:00 from last years £5. When I got to the toll gate at the north end we were confronted with a demand for £9:00.
To add insult to injury. 2 trucks I overtook prior to joining the toll after I got through the toll booth and joined the M6 again were infront of me. 
I was puzzled at the time as to why there was so little traffic on the toll road, I now know why. So that was the last time I use that road.


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## rickwiggans (May 10, 2006)

What I also find irritating are the overhead matrix signs telling you the Toll road is clear. More useful information would be to tell you whether the toll free route is clear. Still, that might lose them some money - or am I just an old cynic??


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## richard863 (May 1, 2005)

Yes Rick
One has to be a cynic to survive in this country now. I must admit while passing the service station I did comment there was a acute shortage of vehicles in the parking slots. Hope they are feeling the pinch like we all are now.
Kind regards


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## Steamdrivenandy (Jun 18, 2007)

I got on the M6 Toll on the way back from Crufts as Tom Tom was sending me down the A38, rather than M42.
I completely forgot I was driving a Tranny and assumed I was going to be charged as a car. Big surprise - £9 - and I'd only travelled about a third of the way along the d**n thing. At least people going the whole length get better value for money. Why can't they charge per mile?

Andy


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## DJP (May 9, 2005)

Try it with a toad on the back. :evil: 

Toll sign says trailers extra. NO indication of cost until you get to pay booth. I only ever used it the once with the toad on the back, but can't remember how much it was IIRC it was £2 or £3 extra. I said I would never use it again and have not done so.

BEWARE!

Dennis


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

Hopefully more and more motorists will avoid this Toll Road and perhaps those who run it will get the message


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## peedee (May 10, 2005)

It's not as bad as the Skye Bridge used to be, £11.50 towing a car! Think a car used to be £6 and it is less than a 1/2 mile.

peedee


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

Never used it.And after this thread I never will.Blood sucking leeches is what they are. :evil: 

steve


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## RAH (Apr 22, 2007)

We were about to use the M6 Toll a few of weeks ago when the sign said it was Clear. We didn't and got caught in some very stop and start traffic.

I agree, why don't they "advertise" the flows for both routes. It's really silly!


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## baldlygo (Sep 19, 2006)

RAH said:


> We were about to use the M6 Toll a few of weeks ago when the sign said it was Clear. We didn't and got caught in some very stop and start traffic.
> 
> I agree, why don't they "advertise" the flows for both routes. It's really silly!


I have found that if there is congestion on the old M6 then signs will usually tell you so as to persuade you to go M6 Toll. So if I see it says M6 Toll Clear it usually means the old M6 is also clear.
RAH you must have been unlucky.

Paul


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

> It's not as bad as the Skye Bridge used to be


A bit nicer scenery there though, eh? :lol:


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## peedee (May 10, 2005)

Its now free of course and Yes the scenery is fantastic when it is not raining and misty!

The M6 toll currently runs at a loss and usage is below predictions especially for HGVs. I cannot see the recent price increases helping either situation.

peedee


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Same here*

Yep

£9 for a VW T5 8 seater, yet the log book states it as being a car. A near 3t Range rover gets charged as a Car!

Rip off

Trev.


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## RAH (Apr 22, 2007)

Paul wrote:


> RAH you must have been unlucky


Actually, we were being frugal with funds, as one does on a long vacation, and probably used more diesel than the toll charges (7.5 miles to the US gallon). Next time...


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## Smilo (Nov 2, 2005)

Would this be a good time to remind folks that the M6 toll is (still?) 75% owned by an Australian company, a manager of which in 2003 got into trouble for describing the M6 toll as a "cash cow"? 

No, probably not.


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## Guest (Mar 17, 2008)

rickwiggans said:


> What I also find irritating are the overhead matrix signs telling you the Toll road is clear. More useful information would be to tell you whether the toll free route is clear. Still, that might lose them some money - or am I just an old cynic??


I was working in Birmingham when the toll road was being built. I believe that the electronic signs which display the message "M6 Toll Clear" (when have they ever displayed a anything else?) are owned and operated by Midland Motorways, the operators of the toll road. Thats why they never display any information about the old M6 route.

Another reason that toll rates are so high for anything other than cars or motorcycles, is that they don't want "heavy" vehicles wearing out their road.

Tco


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## peedee (May 10, 2005)

tco said:


> rickwiggans said:
> 
> 
> > Another reason that toll rates are so high for anything other than cars or motorcycles, is that they don't want "heavy" vehicles wearing out their road.
> ...


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## 109481 (Jan 25, 2008)

*Road charging for the M6*

Please be aware that if no one uses the M6 toll road then all sorts of plans could be put in place to get the money in
How about road charging on the M6 (the cameras are in place) or lots of road works on Spaghetti Junction
Or even closing the motorway because on an 'accident'
Don't say that I didn't warn you!
Happy wheels
Skimbo


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## mep (Jan 4, 2008)

I used to travel M40 / M42 / M6 to Stockport a lot and varied between M6 and M6 toll and at the time i would rather pay the toll than sit in the traffic and face delays around M6 Birmingham. The toll cut an hour off my journey. Pay or Delay I would rather pay, however this is a MH forum and if i travelled that way in my MH for leisure and time did not matter then maybe i would avoid the toll. At least i could put kettle on and use loo if traffic was stationary.
Dont know the miles difference between both but the way fuel is rising it may be cheaper to take the toll soon especially if you have a thirsty MH.
I think they have the same problems in Spain i recentlly drove 92 Kms on a toll motorway mid morning and only counted 6 vehicles in total both ways, guess the spanish have already started to avoid them!
Mick


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## peedee (May 10, 2005)

*Re: Road charging for the M6*



skimbo said:


> Please be aware that if no one uses the M6 toll road then all sorts of plans could be put in place to get the money in
> How about road charging on the M6 (the cameras are in place)
> Happy wheels
> Skimbo


I can see them introducing congestion charging if only to reduce polution in Birmingham but I don't think it is a question of whether the M6 toll is used or not!

I'm like mep(Mick), I use it with my car, for which I have a pass, but never with the motorhome.

peedee


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Toll You So!*



skimbo said:


> Please be aware that if no one uses the M6 toll road then all sorts of plans could be put in place to get the money in
> How about road charging on the M6 (the cameras are in place) or lots of road works on Spaghetti Junction
> Or even closing the motorway because on an 'accident'
> Don't say that I didn't warn you!
> ...


Roads are closed all over the Country by the Police, very often as I have seen it when there has been no need. Why should the M6 be any different?.

Trev.


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Thirsty*



mep said:


> I used to travel M40 / M42 / M6 to Stockport a lot and varied between M6 and M6 toll and at the time i would rather pay the toll than sit in the traffic and face delays around M6 Birmingham. The toll cut an hour off my journey. Pay or Delay I would rather pay, however this is a MH forum and if i travelled that way in my MH for leisure and time did not matter then maybe i would avoid the toll. At least i could put kettle on and use loo if traffic was stationary.
> Dont know the miles difference between both but the way fuel is rising it may be cheaper to take the toll soon especially if you have a thirsty MH.
> I think they have the same problems in Spain i recentlly drove 92 Kms on a toll motorway mid morning and only counted 6 vehicles in total both ways, guess the spanish have already started to avoid them!
> Mick


Hello Mick,

But on those occasions, how many times have you seen the signs "congestion junction 8 & 9" still used the old M6 and found no congestion?.

It would have to be a very thirsty motorhome because at £18 return thats is still four gallons of Diesel.

I would use the toll in a car but not my Working Van or MH as just as the author stated it is a rip off @ £9.

Trev.


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## Smilo (Nov 2, 2005)

*Re: Toll You So!*



teemyob said:


> Roads are closed all over the Country by the Police, very often as I have seen it when there has been no need. Why should the M6 be any different?. Trev.


You're only jealous because they don't bother to check with you before they did the closure. Any _serious_ suggestions as to why the Police might close a road if there were _really _no need?


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Serious*



Smilo said:


> teemyob said:
> 
> 
> > Roads are closed all over the Country by the Police, very often as I have seen it when there has been no need. Why should the M6 be any different?. Trev.
> ...


Yep, plenty of "serious" suggestions as to why.


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## Smilo (Nov 2, 2005)

*Re: Serious*



teemyob said:


> Yep, plenty of "serious" suggestions as to why.


You could tell me, but then you'd have to shoot me, is that the way it is?


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## Suenliam (Mar 22, 2006)

Well just to be contrary :wink: we use the toll road. When travelling to the ferries from up here, it's a small price to pay for avoiding the congestion around Birmingham and the toll road goes exactly where I want it to go. When travelling to Norfolk once, we spent the night at the service station as well. 

The principled part of me detests charges for road use, but when faced with that long journey, I'm afraid the principle gets put to one side.

I think if I lived locally, I would only use the toll in exceptional circumstances.

At least with the Toll road you have a choice. With the Skye bridge the only choice was to travel miles out of your way to the (Kylerea?) ferry and in the winter the road may have been impassable. No even sure if the ferry ran in the winter. 

Sue


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## annetony (May 1, 2005)

When we go down South we avoid the toll road and have never been stuck on the M6 yet, now the M5 thats another matter, we are always stuck on there, so we looked at it this way, why pay to save about an hour when we know we will be stuck on M5 for God knows how long

Anne


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## claypigeon (May 9, 2005)

Hi i was once more or less forced to use the toll road because the A446 was closed near the Belfry,when i got onto the toll i only went about 1/2 mile before i came to a pay station with Dick Turpin inside he took one look at my e425 and asked me for 12 quid (talk about highway robbery) i only had to travel about 3--4 miles before i got onto the M42, i swore at him and to myself that i wouldn't use the toll ever again.

Dave


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## buffallobill (Sep 28, 2007)

opted to use the M6 toll a few fridays ago, time was 16.30 very heavy traffic on old M6, quick calculation in my head was use nearly same amount in fuel queing and going nowhere, on old M6, still ended up queing at the intersection of M6toll and M42, but over all felt the decision was worth it and our motorhome wasnt crawling stop starting , causing unnessecary wear and tear on clutch etc, keep the vehicle rolling if you can. same principal i use when driving hgv`s. however still think we should be classed in the same toll as cars.


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## baldlygo (Sep 19, 2006)

I mostly use the old M6 and have never yet got caught up in a serious jam around Birmingham. I generally only use the M6 Toll if traveling 7am-9am, 4.30pm-6.30pm or when the signs warn of serious congestion. 

Paul


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## duxdeluxe (Sep 2, 2007)

Smilo said:


> Would this be a good time to remind folks that the M6 toll is (still?) 75% owned by an Australian company, a manager of which in 2003 got into trouble for describing the M6 toll as a "cash cow"?
> 
> No, probably not.


I use the M6 toll a lot (in a car -and because I stick it on expenses), but think it is a rip off. I read in the press some time ago that the contract between the government and the operators forgot to include a price escalation clause (if the lawyer that negotiated that contract worked for me he would never work again!) which explains why the prices just go up and up. Most of the HGV companies simply won't use it - even with discounts. Some drivers pay out of their own pockets if they really want to get home after a long haul

For 9 quid I will suffer the old M6


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## 109481 (Jan 25, 2008)

*Its all about the money*

Of course the M6 toll road is great to use but the point I am making is that if not enough people use it then the investment has to be financed in other ways
The government is broke so the government won't subsidise it; Joe public has to
For example, if everyone adhered to the speed limit for 24 hours and didn't set off the speed cameras, how much money would the government lose in revenue and from where would the lost income have to be found
Its all about the money
Happy Wheels
Skimbo


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