Great news on the opening ( hint of sarcasm )
They’re going to let us get used to it then…the plans for next year…
They’re going to dig up the existing M6 between jct 7 and jct 10, fantastic!!!
Guess we’ll just have to pay up!!
Nope, If they dig up the free road, I’ll just park by the toll booth and refuse to pay.
No way am I going to get forced to pay a toll because some twit can’t dig up a road and leave it partly open.
Another urban myth 
whats wrong with paying to use the road anyway?
If you dont want to pay find a way around like I do during rush hour anyway, problem solved.
Because it’s over priced. If it was half the price, I’d use it.
Other rumours speak of weight limits going in on other roads in the area. We can only wait and see on that front.
I will use it , we have been told we will beable to use it by our bosses, they will just pass the cost onto customers, it really is that simple. If it saves time it will be worth using anyway better to pay the toll then have me sitting in a loaded artic looking out the window not moving costing x £s missing my booked time and having a load rejected having to return to base and so missing out on a back load. Pay a few quid or miss out on alot more then a few quid and lost productivity of driver and truck? Its not rocket science now is it■■?
The same foot stomping probley went on with the seven crossing , dartford etc etc.
And as you say “there are rumours” believe me there will be plenty more “rumours” and " my mate said" stories before the road opens.
Well Just testing, or should that be Alastair Darling?
I for one don’t see why we should have to pay to use any motorway in this country, it’s hardly as if we’re spoilt for choice with high-quality trunk routes and a motorway network that’s actually worth the road fund licence is it?
As for rumours and scare stories, I’d wager a substantial amount of money on there being a noticable increase in roadworks around the M6 over the next 12 months at Brum, it stands to reason, if you were the government, what would you do? It’s not the first time a politician has used roadworks to manipulate traffic flows, take ol’ Red Ken and his congestion charging.
Believe me, they’ll try and recoup the costs somehow, and no it’s not rocket science.
Dazza
Dazza you old cynic! 
I’m eith you on this,let’s see now
1.We all know (or should know)that the government of the day raises tax revenue from the road fund licence and fuel duty.It is a tax raising exercise and as the tax will come from somewhere i.e. my pocket,then I accept that.(The level of duty on diesel affecting hauliers is another argument)
2.The revenue raised in this way is ,I believe about 7 times the amount spent on the roads,give or take the odd billion
3.So I think it’s a bit rich for a private company to come along and effectively raise the tax levels even higher because of course they will want to make a profit won’t they?Sounds like the three card trick to me,getting hit from both ends.And for information purposes I’m an employee so it won’t hit me directly
I travelled down the new road Wednesday joined at Cannock no problem 40 minutes later had a break at Corley better than sitting around Walsall the M6 was already backing up to Hilton worth the £10 and the boss will pay. On time for delivery as well. I can see some problems where the M42 and M6 join up with traffic trying to get from the 42 to the 6 and visa versa not long before some major accident there.
The test will be when it opens fully on Monday and next weekend when everyone breaks up for christmas I know if I hear of jams arond Brum I will be using the road if it means i get home earlier.
Any chance you could say it again crispie? I didn’t quite catch what you said.
Dazza:
Well Just testing, or should that be Alastair Darling?I for one don’t see why we should have to pay to use any motorway in this country, it’s hardly as if we’re spoilt for choice with high-quality trunk routes and a motorway network that’s actually worth the road fund licence is it?
So don’t use it Dazza. This bit of road was built with not a penny of our money, the payback being the tolls go to the consortiun that built and will run and maintain it. Just as the second Severn crossing was.
Dazza:
As for rumours and scare stories, I’d wager a substantial amount of money on there being a noticable increase in roadworks around the M6 over the next 12 months at Brum, it stands to reason, if you were the government, what would you do? It’s not the first time a politician has used roadworks to manipulate traffic flows, take ol’ Red Ken and his congestion charging.
But if the toll money does not go to the government how will they benefit except by tax on the company profit? Shouldn’t think that is likely to be very soon given the building costs.
Dazza:
Believe me, they’ll try and recoup the costs somehow, and no it’s not rocket science.Dazza
Spent nowt need to recoup nowt. Its not rocket science.
I don’t envisage using this bit of road not because of any great ideological principle but because if the company don’t pay, and I’m on hours worked there is no benefit for me.
Yesterday, 12/12/03 at about 2:30pm or thereabouts, i crossed over one of the bridges (A460 towards Cannock) over the M6Toll and noticed a slight increase in car traffic southbound, one van and one 7.5 tonner , Then Sally traffic announced that the M6 southbound was closed between J3/J2, so you pay to get past the M5 and spaghetti just to get stuck at Coventry. I didn’t know why the M6 was closed because i was too busy loading for Monday So, on the face of it, they have just moved the bottleneck to either end and eventually Midland Expressway Ltd will end up making money out it
Cheers,
Roy.
I’ll try and mend my reputation after Wiretwister did his best to paint me as a numpty with half a brain… here goes.
First of all, do you not think it’s at all possible that the government has subsidised Midland Expressway in any way? It’s not crazy to envisage some serious greasing going on to even get them round the negotiating table, after all, this road was first envisaged in 1980 and finally got the go ahead in the late 1990’s.
Far from tax on the company profit being the only way the government benefits from this scheme, it also gets the VAT from every single one of us, ker-ching!
We pay far more than the rest of the EU to use our roads, VED, Fuel tax, Insurance tax etc. Before anyone goes on about France, Portugal etc having toll roads, there usually are suitable alternatives on the continent. What is the alternative to the M6 toll? The M6!
It makes you wonder why we pay road tax at all.
Dazza
dazza
you took the words right out of my mouth
Dazza:
I’ll try and mend my reputation after Wiretwister did his best to paint me as a numpty with half a brain… here goes.
How so Dazza? I simply made the valid point that this road had none of our, i.e. taxpayers, money used to build this road. That flawed premise tainted the rest of your points as, IMHO, flawed.
Dazza:
First of all, do you not think it’s at all possible that the government has subsidised Midland Expressway in any way? It’s not crazy to envisage some serious greasing going on to even get them round the negotiating table, after all, this road was first envisaged in 1980 and finally got the go ahead in the late 1990’s.
And when did MEL get involved? Thinking that something may have happened does not mean it has happened, unless you KNOW something of fact that you can put into a public forum rather than opinion. Here’s a link, you may think it’s tainted because its a company site, but if its wrong prove it. m6toll.co.uk/about/history.asp
Dazza:
Far from tax on the company profit being the only way the government benefits from this scheme, it also gets the VAT from every single one of us, ker-ching!
Nice try but again flawed since those business users that pay VAT will be able to claim this back, Indeed this was used by the MEL spokesman on the Jeremy Vine show this week to promote the value, in the company opinion, this gave to users. His own quote was a real cost of £8:50 for trucks. Now I don’t know for certain but I would expect the majority of the users of this road will be commercial users able to claim the VAT back so there would be no gain to the government from these users.
Dazza:
We pay far more than the rest of the EU to use our roads, VED, Fuel tax, Insurance tax etc. Before anyone goes on about France, Portugal etc having toll roads, there usually are suitable alternatives on the continent. What is the alternative to the M6 toll? The M6!
Agreed.
Dazza:
It makes you wonder why we pay road tax at all.Dazza
No it doesn’t, it’s just the answer may not be very palatable. The choice, as I see it, is a political one of what services the state is expected to provide and how those services are funded.
Dear Oh Dear, Wiretwister, you’re almost as stubborn as me.
Wiretwister:
And when did MEL get involved? Thinking that something may have happened does not mean it has happened, unless you KNOW something of fact that you can put into a public forum rather than opinion. Here’s a link, you may think it’s tainted because its a company site, but if its wrong prove it.
I believe MEL got involved way back in 1992 but the project was virtually shelved when Labour came to power, as they wanted to fundamentally rethink the roadbuilding ethos, notwithstanding New Labour’s environmentally-friendly credentials and past actions they decided to go ahead with this project, something obviously made them change their mind, wonder what it could be
Wiretwister:
How so Dazza? I simply made the valid point that this road had none of our, i.e. taxpayers, money used to build this road. That flawed premise tainted the rest of your points as, IMHO, flawed.
Just a thought, do you get a free go on the toll road every time you mention the word flawed?
Wiretwister:
Nice try but again flawed since those business users that pay VAT will be able to claim this back,
Or in other words I’m alright Jack. What better way to widen the gap between car drivers and hauliers? At the end of the day we’re all car drivers and to have to pay twice – or more if you include the tax on fuel - to use the same stretch of road is something I have a problem with, and it’s clear I’m not alone, your average car driver will not be claiming the VAT back.
Wiretwister:
I would expect the majority of the users of this road will be commercial users able to claim the VAT back so there would be no gain to the government from these users.
I disagree with you on the typical M6toll user, I reckon that at £2 a go for skateboard drivers they would have less hang-ups about using it compared with a haulier paying £10, sorry £8.50.
Dazza
Dazza:
I believe MEL got involved way back in 1992 but the project was virtually shelved when Labour came to power, as they wanted to fundamentally rethink the roadbuilding ethos, notwithstanding New Labour’s environmentally-friendly credentials and past actions they decided to go ahead with this project, something obviously made them change their mind, wonder what it could be
I remember reading somewhere that when labour came to power the contracts to build the M6toll were already let and it would cost them (us)almost as much not to build it as to build it so they grudgingly gave it the go-ahead.
Now we get Alastair Darling saying this is the way forward.
I was driving along the A5 today through Cannock with all the other wagons thinking that there was a new bypass to all this that none of us could afford to use while all the local residents still get trucks rolling past their doors. How long before the A5 gets some weight restrictions?
Saw plenty of cars on the toll road today, and joy of joys no queue on the M6 when I joined it from the M54 at 4.15pm.
Calv