VOTE: North Lincolnshire must choose between Humber Bridge tolls and road upgrades

HUMBER Bridge tolls could be axed – if the region sacrifices funding for crucial road upgrades, the new transport has secretary said.

Phillip Hammond said North Lincolnshire's leaders face a "tough decision" over whether to choose funding for transport links or to have the bridge toll debt written off.

Road upgrades which could be affected include the A63 Castle Street in Hull and the A160 near Immingham, a crucial part of a bid to create a South Bank super port.

But Mr Hammond warned the region cannot have both due to funding cuts.

He told the Scunthorpe Telegraph: "These are the kind of tough decisions that communities are going to have to deal with, deciding which of the various pressing problems is most important to the area.

"In relation to bridge tolls, you've essentially got a trade off between do we invest more in infrastructure or do we use the available money to avoid, in the case of bridge tolls, charging?"

Mr Hammond visited the region before the election to hear the arguments for tackling the tolls, which critics argue are stifling the local economy.

He was then Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, but was unexpectedly moved to head up the Transport department when the Conservatives entered Government with the Liberal Democrats.

Mr Hammond said the Government had learned lessons from the last recession in the 1990s and would not cut back too hard on spending for new transport projects.

He said: "There is only going to be a certain amount of money, and it's likely to be quite limited. If money is spent in one area it won't be able to be spent in another."

The upgrade of the A160, seen as a vital step in bringing thousands of jobs to the South Humber Bank, was approved in the run-up to the election by the last Labour government.

But the project, which was set to cost up to £132-million, has been put on hold until a Government spending review in October as ministers move to cut the nation's record £154-billion deficit.

The Telegraph understands the Department for Transport is still involved in detailed discussions with the Humber Bridge Board about the level of the tolls, and the bridge's long-term funding.

But Mr Hammond's comments suggest the region faces a stark choice between new roads and an end to the tolls.

The Chief Executive of Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce, Ian Kelly, gave a measured response yesterday.

"We had a very productive and insightful meeting with Mr Hammond as Shadow Chief Secretary last year and much appreciated his candour," he said.

"We did of course also highlight that spending on transport in Yorkshire and particularly the Humber has been amongst the lowest in the UK for a long period of time.

"We therefore now hope as Transport Secretary he will take this into account when looking at our three priorities of writing off the Humber Bridge debt and upgrading Castle Street in Hull and the A160."

Long-serving campaigner Jenny Walton, who leads Humber Action Against Tolls, said: "It's just infuriating when you think about the billions upon billions that are being dropped into London."

Bridge Board Chairman Councillor David Gemmell said: "The bridge board's function is to run the bridge and pay the debt.

"Whatever happens we have to do that, we're legally bound to do that, and we'll take whatever steps are required."