Cash toll for a car making a single journey through the Birkenhead and Wallasey tunnels is frozen at £1.80 and for those paying for the 24/7 Fast Tag Toll the cost will just be £1. Tony McDonough reports

Drivers will be able to use the two Mersey Tunnels for just £1 from Monday, April 1, as Mersey Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram delivers one of his key election pledges.

The cash toll for a car making a single journey through the Birkenhead and Wallasey tunnels is being frozen at £1.80 and for those paying for the 24/7 Fast Tag Toll the cost will just be £1, saving £1.60 per return journey and potentially more than £400 a year.

Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, the reduced rate is available to all residents living in Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens and Halton and will be the lowest tunnel toll in more than 25 years.

New figures released by Merseytravel and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority reveal that more than 57,000 existing Fast Tag customers regularly use the Mersey Tunnels. The tolls for all other vehicles – including large vans, coaches and HGVs – will also be held at 2018 rates.

Mr Rotheram said: “If, before now, you’ve been paying cash you’ll be saving £1.60 for each return trip you make. That’s thousands of pounds every day going back into the pockets of tunnel users living in our city region.

“I understand that nobody likes to have to pay to use the tunnels, but they are a critical part of our city region’s transport network and we do not receive any central Government money to run, maintain or improve them.

“Until we receive national funding, tolls will be necessary to keep the tunnels in operation – but I will always work as hard as I can to keep the cost as low as possible, especially for Liverpool city region residents.”