Traffic on M6 Toll falls by over 10%

The latest figures for the 27-mile toll road show average daily traffic for the period from October to December was down 10.7 per cent on the year before. The drop is thought to be due to a combination of the current challenging economy plus improvements to the M6 motorway.

Midland Expressway said “Overal, the lower traffic volumes were primarily due to continuing weak economic conditions in the UK as well as operational improvements on the competing M6 motorway which has implemented active traffic management and hard shoulder running to reduce congestion on several sections."

The figures come on the back of a recent study by the Campaign for Better Transport, which criticised the M6 Toll road and its operators for building a road that has failed to reduce congestion, describing the entire project as a "terrible investment, running at a considerable loss."

The study found that less than 2,000 HGVs and trucks used the M6 Toll road a day, whereas 32,400 used the M6 between junctions 3 and 11.

The Campaign for Better Transport study criticises the operator for not focusing on affordability for motorists and truck operators in challenging economic times and claims "five years after it opened, hauliers have overwhelmingly rejected the M6 Toll, choosing instead to remain on the already congested M6."