Humber Bridge 'vital to community'

Date: 15/6/2011

The government is continuing its review of the Humber Bridge and the debts that are attached to it.

Crossing the estuary between Barton-upon-Humber and Hessle in East Yorkshire, the suspension bridge is one of the biggest of its kind in the world.

It has charged a toll to motorists using it since its opening in the 1980s and the Humber Bridge Board recently applied to have this increased in order to help repay its borrowings.

The Department for Transport has announced that it will maintain a reduced interest rate on the debt in order to help the Board save £48 million over the next five years, while it agrees with a Public Inquiry Inspector's recommendation that a toll increase be backed.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury Justine Greening said the crossing is "essential" for the local community.

However, she added: "A long-term sustainable solution is needed and this is why the Chancellor [George Osborne] and I are working alongside the Department for Transport to look at options to deliver this essential reform."

According to the Humber Bridge Board, between 2009 and 2010 some 5,579,000 cars and non-heavy goods vehicles used the bridge.

Posted by Mary Treen