Tolling the A14 across Cambridgeshire may not deliver what advocates expect

Philip Bates, Buro Happold

03 August 2012

Philip Bates is a director at Buro Happold, with 25 years experience providing policy and evaluation advice on transport infrastructure projects, including working around the world on shadow tolls and real tolls.

Last month’s announcement by the DfT of proposals to upgrade and possibly toll the A14 has reignited the debate about user tolls on our roads. While the details are unclear, it would appear that the proposal is for a relatively short (20 mile) stretch of tolled expressway, with free local roads either side.

Unless the DfT is back-tracking on previous statements that tolling will not be introduced on existing capacity, this proposal appears very analogous to the managed lane schemes of the...