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C-charge: You could still have say
David Ottewell
9/ 6/2008


A REFERENDUM on Greater Manchester's planned congestion charge has NOT been ruled out, it emerged today.

Sir Richard Leese, deputy chairman of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), said it had not yet been decided what form consultation on the proposal would take.

The news came just hours before transport minister Rosie Winterton was due to visit the region to confirm an offer of £3bn of public transport improvements in return for introducing the charge.

That will trigger 12 weeks of public consultation before AGMA - the umbrella body representing the 10 council areas of Greater Manchester - votes on whether to go ahead.

Current voting rules require two thirds of councils to be in favour and Trafford, Bury and Stockport are opposed to the charge.

Sir Richard, who is also Manchester council leader, said: "We will be deciding at the end of the month what form the consultation is going to take. Nothing has been ruled out.

"At the end of this process our aim is not to go for a two-thirds majority. We hope that at the end of the consultation it will be clear what people want and that there will be agreement."

Sir Richard - who has previously said a referendum `would not work' for such a complex issue - made it clear he was still personally not in favour.

He said: "Normally referendums are for constitutional-type issues, not for issues that elected members would usually take. We do have a system based on elected representatives who have to take difficult and important decisions.

"Are we going to have a referendum every time we face a difficult decision?"

Ms Winterton was expected to confirm the success of AGMA's bid for £1.2bn from the transport innovation fund (TIF), plus permission to borrow around £1.8bn more.

The money would be spent revolutionising public transport with the completion of the `Big Bang' tram extension to Rochdale, Oldham, Ashton under Lyne, the airport and the Trafford Centre. There would also be cash to improve buses and trains.

In return, Greater Manchester would introduce a peak-hour congestion charge of up to £5 a day at current prices.

The charge would require motorists to fit special tags to their car windscreens, which would be electronically scanned.

There would be two charging `rings' - one around the M60 and one nearer the city centre - with motorists charged only if they travelled in certain directions at peak hours. Vehicles would pay more for passing through both rings, up to a maximum level.

It would be the country's biggest road-pricing scheme and the first in any major city outside London.

Graham Stringer, MP for Manchester Blackley, said the charge was `politically and economically' a bad idea.

He said: "This is an experiment for the government but it is not an experiment for us.

"It is fundamentally changing the nature of the Greater Manchester economy so that billions of pounds have to be taken out of a relatively small number of pockets."

But Tony Lloyd, MP for Manchester Central, said congestion was holding back the local economy, adding that without the charge some 30,000 new jobs could be lost to the region.

Sean Corker, of pressure group Manchester Against Road Tolls, said: "Gordon Brown and (transport secretary) Ruth Kelly are announcing a new motoring tax when there is growing unrest over increases in existing motoring costs."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority (GMPTA) is effectively leaderless until its annual general meeting on June 20. Former chairman Roger Jones lost his seat on Salford council - and the GMPTA - when he was defeated at the polls in May. And deputy chairman Allen Brett retired from the authority at the same time.

The M.E.N. revealed on Saturday that the government was going to announce today that it had accepted Greater Manchester's bid.

Labour-run Manchester, Salford, Wigan and Tameside are in favour, as are Lib Dem-held Rochdale, and Oldham. Bolton has pledged a local referendum.

The C-Charge explained

10/ 6/2008


THE government today paved the way for Greater Manchester to introduce Britain's biggest congestion charge scheme in return for a £3bn revolution in public transport.

The region could benefit from £1.5bn in grants, plus permission to borrow £1.2bn more, if it brings in a peak-hour charge of up to £5 a day at current prices.

But what will it mean for ordinary commuters? Here is an at a glance guide to the C-Charge. And don't forget to click on the photogallery for a map of the public transport improvements and on the interactive map to work out just how you will be affected.

*Funding package of up to £3bn, including £1.5bn government grants, £1.2bn of loan paid back through a congestion charge, £100m of third-party funding and government money for extra rail carriages.

*Money comes on top of about £600m for the first phase of the Metrolink tram network extension

*Money will pay for a package of public transport improvements

*Completion of the "Big Bang" Metrolink tram extension, with lines to Rochdale and Oldham town centres, the airport, Ashton under Lyne and the Trafford Centre

*120 extra yellow buses for schools

*Bus feeder services to rail and Metrolink stations

*Increase in bus services to the city centre

*Eight new transport interchanges

*Increased rail capacity for 7,000 extra passengers at peak times

*Double the amount of park and ride facilities around the city

*Real time electronic information at all major bus, rail and tram stations

*A new travel "smartcard" which can be used across different forms of transport owned by different companies

*Charge not introduced until summer 2013

*Will be capped at £5 a day at 2007 prices, estimated to be £6 a day in 2013

*Fewer than 20 per cent of drivers expected to pay a charge at all

*Charge based on two "rings" - first just inside the M60 and the second roughly around the inner ring road

*Motorists will use a "tag and beacon" system, with pre-paid electronic tags

*Charges apply Monday to Friday, from 7am-9.30am towards the city centre, and from 4pm-6.30pm outwards

*Drivers will pay £2 (at 2007 prices) for crossing the outer ring in the morning, and a further £1 for crossing the inner ring

*Outward peak-time journeys will cost £1 for passing the inner ring and £1 for passing the outer ring.

*No charges at other times, or at weekends or on Bank Holidays.

Click here to see an interactive map of the congestion charge zones

Chris Osuh
10/ 6/2008

COMMUTERS also gave a mixed reaction to the congestion charge plans.

Chris Martin, 45, a builder from Swinton, said: "I live 600 yards from the M60 and if I want to go to the shop in the morning I will be charged.

"At the moment I'm working in Cheadle, which is outside the charge zone, and where I live is outside the charge zone, but I will still have to pay to get there. Trips like this, where I just skirt around Manchester, are likely to cost me £1,000 a year.

"In Swinton we have just one bus service to Manchester and no train station within walking distance. I agree with the congestion charge in principle, but unless somebody is going to come up with a fantastic service for my area I will be one of those people who suffers all the negatives of the scheme and none of the positives.

"Even if public transport is going to be improved, I can't carry a cement mixer and tools on the bus."

Steve Burne, a 37-year-old company boss from Altrincham, said: "I have no problem changing journey times, or taking the tram instead of the car, which I don't do at the moment because the system is not reliable.

"We may have to adapt our working patterns, but a lot of staff use public transport and they will benefit from improvements."

Rick Amaoko, a 31-year-old computer support worker from Levenshulme, said: "I travel to work at Salford Quays and would pick up a charge on my usual route. It's likely that I will change and go through Hulme - along with about 2,000 other drivers!

"It would take massive improvements for me to abandon my car. Getting a bus to town is fine, but getting a rush hour tram to Salford is a nightmare."

The PRIVATISED services of First Bus and Northern Rail are not SERVING my constituents. They have CUT services constantly. The rail service in particular is seriously overcrowded

I do not think it fair to impose charges on constituents who need to use these roads to get to work or to hospitals

black day for Manchester

I am sure a Conservative government would not roll out a congestion charging scheme nationally. The current scheme is top politics and thus not a democracy

I think MART must work to get the Bolton referendum through with a resounding NO.. (which is probable ) That's the fourth council they need to scupper this once and for all.

Sir Richard Leese answers c-charge questions
Who will get away with not paying the c-charge?

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U-turn over c-charge vote
David Ottewell - Exclusive
25/ 6/2008


GREATER MANCHESTER could be set for a referendum on congestion charging after a shock u-turn by council chiefs.

Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester council, said he would back the region-wide vote - but only if all 10 local authorities agreed to be bound by the result.

The move could break a deadlock over whether to go ahead with the government's offer of £3bn for public transport improvements in return for the peak-hour only charge of up to £10 a day.

Currently Trafford, Bury and Stockport council are opposed to the deal - and they cannot be legally forced to change their mind.

Manchester, Salford, Tameside, Wigan, Rochdale and Oldham support the plan, while Bolton has pledged to hold a local referendum.

The Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), a coalition of the 10 councils, had previously looked set to vote on the matter under a two-thirds rule.

That would have meant seven of the councils would have had to have said `yes' for the deal to go ahead.

But the two-thirds rule is voluntary - and opposition to the charge now runs so deep it looks like Trafford, Bury and Stockport will refuse to be bound.

Sir Richard, who has previously said the issue was `too complicated' for a yes-no referendum, revealed this morning he had had a rethink.

"In general I'm not in favour of referendums because they undermine our system of representative democracy," he said. "Every year the city council makes lots of decisions many of which have far more impact on our citizens lives than the proposed congestion charge.

Decisions

"We couldn't possibly have a referendum on all of them and that's how our system works - we elect representatives to make those decisions, and if we don't like the decisions they make we vote them out.

"So, is the £3bn we propose to spend on public transport and the consequent congestion charge any different?

"I've come to the conclusion that it is because we don't have an indirectly or directly elected body for Greater Manchester that has the power to make this decision, and ten different councils making potentially ten different decisions is the road to chaos.

"I'm prepared to back a Greater Manchester-wide referendum, after the consultation process has concluded, as long as all ten councils in Greater Manchester agree in advance that they will be bound by the result."

Transport secretary Ruth Kelly announced earlier this month she was prepared to give Greater Manchester £1.5bn from its transport innovation fund, plus permission to borrow £1.2bn more against the proceeds of the planned congestion charge.

That money would be topped up with around £100m from third parties and £200m more from the government for heavy rail.

The cash is conditional on the charge - which would consist of two charging rings, one around the M60 and one closer to Manchester city centre - being brought in around 2013. The average charge would be £3 a day at current prices, with motorists paying nothing at all off-peak or at weekends.

Fourteen weeks of public consultation on the deal are due to start next month. Under Sir Richard's proposal, the referendum would be held only after it had finished.

The suggestion will be discussed by leaders of all 10 councils at an AGMA meeting on Friday.

A potential stumbling block emerged this afternoon, when Trafford leader Susan Williams said she would only support a referendum if the results were broken down borough-by-borough.

If the voters of Trafford said `no', she said, she would continue to oppose the charge - even if the overall result across Greater Manchester was a `yes'.

"I think each borough should take their own results as definite as to what people in that area think," she said.

Graham Stringer, Labour MP for Manchester Blackley and an opponent of the bid, said: "I think this is a very good idea.

"It gives us a chance to get all the arguments out in the open."

C-charge turmoil over ballot
David Ottewell
26/ 6/2008

PLANS for a Greater Manchester-wide referendum on congestion charging were in turmoil today, just hours after they were announced.

Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester council , stunned political colleagues by declaring he would support the vote - provided all 10 local authorities in the area accepted the overall result.

The move was a dramatic U-turn by the most prominent supporter of plans to introduce the peak-hour-only charge in return for £3bn of public transport improvements.

Sir Richard has always previously claimed the issue was 'too complicated' for a simple yes-or-no referendum.

Now he has raised the possibility of a referendum costing more than £1m and would be carried out by post in October after 14 weeks of public consultation.

Sir Richard's abrupt change of heart - revealed in later editions of yesterday's Manchester Evening News - was being seen today as a bold gamble aimed at putting opponents of the deal on the back foot by conceding their central demand.

The sting in the tail was insisting councils in the `no' camp - Trafford, Bury and Stockport - should abide by the view expressed by the 2.55m people in Greater Manchester as a whole.

The leaders of the 10 councils will meet on Friday morning to discuss the proposal.

But Susan Williams, Tory leader in Trafford, told the MEN she would want the results of any Greater Manchester-wide referendum to be broken down by borough. If the voters of Trafford said `no', she said, she would continue to oppose the deal - regardless of results elsewhere.

Coun Williams' view was branded 'undemocratic' by senior Labour sources last night - a charge previously levelled at Sir Richard for refusing to consider a referendum.

The Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), a coalition of the 10 councils, had previously looked set to vote on the proposed cash-for-congestion-charge deal under a special 'two-thirds' rule.

That would have meant seven of the councils would have had to have said 'yes' for the deal to go ahead. But the two-thirds rule is voluntary - meaning no individual authority can be forced to accept it as legally binding. Any council could simply choose to ignore it and refuse to hand over the powers needed for a Greater Manchester-wide charging scheme.

Hardening

That looked increasingly likely, with opposition hardening in Trafford, Stockport and Bury. A referendum is seen as a way to break the deadlock.

John Merry, Labour leader of Salford council, backed Sir Richard's proposal and said he would `expect all ten authorities to agree to be bound by the result'.

Lib Dem Alan Taylor, leader of Rochdale council, agreed a 'disciplined' referendum should be a `central part' of the consultation process.

A spokesman for Cliff Morris, Labour leader of Bolton council, said he welcomed Sir Richard's announcement. The spokesman added that a Greater Manchester-wide vote would render Bolton's own plans for a local referendum unnecessary. Howard Sykes, Lib Dem leader of Oldham council, said the move was `progress' in the debate but refused to be drawn on whether he would back it at tomorrow's meeting.

A spokesperson for Bury council said: "Bury fully supports the idea of a public consultation to get local people's views on congestion charging and the proposed upgrades to public transport networks as we said in our statement two weeks ago."

Dave Goddard, Lib Dem leader of Stockport council, said Sir Richard's announcement was `the last act of a desperate man'.

"He [Sir Richard] knew he was not going to get this through AGMA," said Coun Goddard. "I cautiously welcome this but there are questions I want answers to, such as what will be asked in the referendum."

Coun Goddard said he would be discussing colleagues whether Stockport should agree to be bound by the result across the whole of Greater Manchester

C-charge survey cost 'too high'
Don Frame
27/ 6/2008


THE £3m cost of a huge public consultation exercise on controversial plans for congestion charging in Greater Manchester has been blasted as `too high'.

Coun Susan Williams, leader of Tory-controlled Trafford council which is opposed to the road-toll scheme, told a meeting of local authority leaders the amount seemed `very excessive'.

And she told the meeting of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities the budget could be reduced if opinion polls were not carried out as part of the exercise. She said it would be `unnecessary' if a referendum was to be held before a final decision was made.

Manchester council leader Sir Richard Leese defended the cost of the consultation exercise saying: "It is a substantial amount of money - the equivalent of 50p per head of the population of Greater Manchester - but we are talking about one of the most significant things ever to have happened in our conurbation.

"Given that we are trying to communicate with a massive number of people, I don't think it is excessive. We have to tell people very clearly what they are being asked about."

He stressed again that at the end of the consultation process there had to be a single decision made.

"My proposition is that at the end of the process we have a referendum and that all 10 Greater Manchester authorities agree in advance to be bound by the result," he said.

If a referendum is held, Sir Richard said he would want the Electoral Commission to be an advisor on the project.

"We would have to show that the exercise is completely independent," he said.

Bury council leader Bob Bibby said he was happy with the idea of a referendum to canvass public views - but not a Greater Manchester one.

Coun Williams said she fully supported the idea of a referendum, but has already said she would want the results broken down borough by borough, and if Trafford voters said no, she would continue to oppose the scheme.

Councillors agreed to discuss the issue fully with their respective authorities and a full discussion on the idea will be held at the next meeting in July.

The AGMA meeting was told that if the pay-to-drive scheme is finally introduced, there was a case for making thousands of private-hire car drivers exempt from road tolls in addition to licensed hackney carriage drivers.

Coun Howard Sykes from Oldham, told the meeting: "In Oldham we have something like 90 hackney drivers but well over 1,000 private hire drivers. Private hire cars are an important part of public transport and should be exempt from paying the toll.

"You are going to be letting yourselves in for a lot of grief otherwise."

The meeting was also told that exempted vehicles should include refuse and waste-carrying vehicles, along with other public service vehicles.

Sir Richard Leese said: "Nothing about the draft plans is written in stone. There are all manner of option which will be thoroughly looked at."

C-charge bid: shock blow
David Ottewell
27/ 6/2008


GREATER Manchester’s congestion charge bid has been dealt a hammer blow with the appointment of an anti-charge Conservative as the region’s ‘Mr Transport’.

Matt Colledge, the deputy leader of Trafford council, was elected chairman of the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority (GMPTA) after the Tories struck a deal with the Liberal Democrats.

He replaces Labour’s Roger Jones, who lost both the post and his Salford council seat in an anti-congestion charge backlash in May.





Coun Colledge was elected at yesterday’s GMPTA annual general meeting, beating Labour’s candidate – Manchester councillor Andrew Fender – by 16 votes to 13.

Under the terms of the deal with the Lib Dems, Coun Colledge will be expected to remain neutral on issues relating to the congestion charge. Critics warned last night that would be all but impossible in the chairman’s role.

Split

The Lib Dems are already split on the congestion charge, with Lib Dem-run Stockport against the proposal and Rochdale in favour.

Coun Colledge’s victory cannot technically derail Greater Manchester’s bid for £3bn of public transport improvements in return for a peak-hour only charge of up to £10 a day.

The bid – already approved by government and about to go out for 14 weeks of public consultation – is in the name of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), a coalition of the region’s 10 councils.

But the GMPTA does set other transport policies and the chairman is traditionally seen as the 'voice’ of public transport in Greater Manchester.

Mr Jones used the position to great effect as was seen by many people as the single most important supporter of the congestion charge.

Referendum

Coun Colledge has spoken out against the bid in the past and recently said he would not accept the results of a Greater Manchester-wide referendum unless the results were broken down, borough-by-borough.



The Tory-Lib Dem deal comes just days after the two parties teamed up to unseat Labour’s Fred Walker as chairman of the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority. Then, the deal saw Lib Dem Paul Shannon elected as the new chair.

Keith Whitmore, a senior Lib Dem from Manchester, will be Coun Colledge’s vice-chairman at the GMPTA. It is understood Coun Colledge will serve just one year before a Lib Dem takes his place.

The appointment of a GMPTA chairman was originally due to take place last week. But when a vote was taken there was a 16-16 tie – meaning the meeting was adjourned until yesterday for a re-vote.

Holidays

In the meantime two of the 15 Labour members went on pre-booked family holidays, leaving the way clear for a coalition of the 11 Lib Dems and seven Tories.

It is the first time the GMPTA has not had a Labour chairman.

Coun Whitmore told the MEN the appointment of Coun Colledge was a ‘principled decision’ and not a ‘marriage of convenience’.

“The GMPTA should not be involved in promoting the congestion charge,” he said.

“Roger Jones did, and look where he is now. He was the fall guy.

“We will be releasing a policy agreement with the Conservatives that will make it very clear that as far as the PTA is concerned, it is there to promote public transport. It is not our job to promote the congestion charge. That is a matter for AGMA.”

But one senior pro-charge Lib Dem source said last night: “This has to be the worst decision we have made. It is terrible.”

Coun Colledge released a statement saying: “It is a privilege to be appointed chair of the authority and I thank members for giving me this opportunity.
“I look forward to taking on this role and working with all my colleagues on the authority during this very exciting time for public transport in Greater Manchester.”

C-charge car park row
PRO-CONGESTION charge councillors are planning to build themselves a private underground car park in the city centre.

Senior Labour councillors - who are backing the toll in exchange for a massive expansion of public transport - want to tunnel next to the town hall to provide spaces for the 96 elected members, a handful of top officials and approved visitors.

Ironically the car park bunker, under the Peace Gardens, would be only a few yards from one of Manchester's main tram stops in St Peter's Square.

C-charge car park row
PRO-CONGESTION charge councillors are planning to build themselves a private underground car park in the city centre.

I am not at all surprised.

Might I ask all those who live in the Bury area to vote for an elected Mayor in the mayoral referendum tomorrow?

It's more comprehensive than the toll tax as a Mayor has lots of different duties to oversee. .. but one who can steer towards a fair minded policy and deliver what folk want on all levels.. and the right choice effectively sticking a spoke in the wheel of the toll taxers if elected .. is not to be sneezed at.

Do vote. Bury based lurks! We (either me or Wildy will put up similar on other boards.)

C-charge: public to vote

25/ 7/2008

GREATER Manchester WILL have a vote on congestion charging.

Leaders of the 10 local councils have agreed that a referendum should take place on the controversial proposal.

But the results will be broken down on a borough by borough basis and only if people in seven out of the 10 Greater Manchester authorities vote yes will congestion charges be imposed. Any less and the scheme will collapse.

53pc 'support for c-charge'
Exclusive David Ottewell
18/ 8/2008

THE people of Greater Manchester WILL vote for congestion charging, according to secret polling data obtained by the M.E.N.

A survey of more than 5,000 people shows 53 per cent support plans to use the peak-hour charge to help fund massive investment in public transport.

A total of 40 per cent say `no', seven per cent are undecided.

Crucially, more people support the proposal than oppose it in EVERY ONE of Greater Manchester's 10 boroughs. Council chiefs have agreed the charge will only be brought if it wins support in at least seven in a December referendum.

In return the government will hand over £1.5bn to revolutionise trams, trains and buses - and allow the area to borrow £1.2bn more against three decades of profits from the charge.

The Mori poll is part of a massive £3m consultation exercise.

It shows backing for the deal is strongest in Wigan, with 58 per cent in favour and 36 per cent against. There are also clear majorities in favour in Manchester (56-38), Rochdale (57-39), Trafford (55-38) and Stockport (52-41).

Support is weakest in Tory-run Bury, where 49 per cent say `yes' compared to 46 per cent saying `no'. The majorities are also slimmer in Salford (50-44), Tameside (51-44), Oldham (51-41) and Bolton (51-40).

The figures will put pressure on the Tory leadership in Trafford and Stockport's Lib Dem chiefs. Both have declared strong opposition to the deal, claiming they are reflecting local attitudes. Conservative-led Bury council also wants a `no' vote.

The question was almost exactly the same as it is expected to appear in the referendum.

It says the charge would not be introduced before summer 2013, when `at least 80 per cent of the proposed new public transport' is up and running.

The findings broadly reflect polls carried out by the M.E.N. and GfK NOP this summer.

Both found majority support in favour but experts thought opposition would grow once the `no' campaign started.

They pointed out that in the last congestion charge referendum, in Edinburgh in 2005, 74 per cent voted against.

Supporters of the Manchester deal say the difference is the massive amount of cash that would go into public transport.

Opponents will take heart from the fact that support was `softer' than opposition.

Only 21 per cent said they would `definitely' accept it with 32 per cent saying `probably'. That compares to 27 per cent saying they would `definitely' reject the deal and 14 per cent saying `probably'

C-charge: Tech trials go ahead

18/ 8/2008

THE government is pressing ahead with trials of technology that could eventually pave the way for a national road-pricing scheme.

Eight areas have been chosen to try different types of systems that could be used for local congestion charging schemes.

At least some of the trials will involve satnav-based vehicle tracking that might eventually be used for a national `pay-as-you-drive' scheme.

None of the trials will be in Greater Manchester, which is already considering whether to introduce a peak-hour only congestion charge in return for £3bn of investment in public transport.

But the Department for Transport said today said it was 'absolute nonsense' to suggest the technology trials, likely to involve 100 cars in each area and start in 2010, meant national road pricing would definitely go ahead.

"We're a very long way from that which is why our priority now and over the next decade is on tackling congestion where it is experienced most - in our cities and on our motorways."

The charge will only go ahead when 80% of the new public transport is operational? If it's any good there would be less congestion already due to people using it, no?

...the (road pricing) technology trials, likely to involve 100 cars in each area...