It could cost less for local people to use the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry regularly than for people from further afield, if the organisation that operates the crossings gets its way.

The Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee wants to be able to raise charges for occasional users and tourists who pay with cash, whilst increasing the 50 per cent discount for users of pre-paid electronic Tamar tags.

The two crossings are operated and maintained jointly by Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council.

Last year, the committee applied to the Secretary of State for Transport, who has the final say, to increase tolls for cars from £2.60 to £3, and from £1.30 to £1.50 for tag subscribers. A decision is awaited following a public inquiry.

The two councils say income from tolls doesn’t cover the rising costs of maintaining and operating the bridge, especially as crossings have fallen since the pandemic. And there has been a call for government to take responsibility for the bridge from cash-strapped councils.

Many people who cross into Plymouth from Cornwall regularly – including those in the Calstock and Callington area – say a price increase will hit them hard. They have the backing of local MPs, who met members of the committee last week to press the case for more benefit for local people.

The committee agreed that inflation should be the basis of increasing tolls, in tandem with a ten-year strategy to secure cheaper charges for local people.

Cllrs Martin Worth (Con, Cornwall Council, Saltash, Trematon and Landrake) and Jon Dingle (Labour, St Budeaux), joint chairs of the committee, said they recognised the importance of the crossings.

They had continued to press both the current and previous governments for more funding to keep services running and enable the public to cross the Tamar safely.

Sutton and Devonport Labour MP Luke Pollard said: “This is a serious proposal that will safeguard income to run the bridge and the ferry, as well as saving local people money and giving them the lion’s share of the benefits,” he said.

Labour MP for South East Cornwall Anna Gelderd said: “For decades, local residents in South East Cornwall have unfairly shouldered the burden of Tamar crossings’ tolls, and I stand with them in their opposition. This is a long-standing issue that requires a serious, long-term plan to ensure a fairer system for those who rely on the bridge and ferry services.”

Fred Thomas, Labour MP for Plymouth Moor View, said: “For far too long, the Tamar crossings have been used as a political football, but no longer. For the first time, we are working cross party to deliver cheaper tolls for local people, securing the future of the crossings and giving our communities a fair deal.”

A programme called Tamar 2050 looking at how to increase income from the bridge includes a plan to remove toll booths and barriers and bring in ‘open road tolling’ using automatic number plate recognition to improve traffic flow. The £16-million cost of the new system would be met by government.