Cost of driving through the Mersey Tunnels will rise in 2026 but Liverpool City Region Combined Authority says prices of bus tickets for young people will be frozen. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has revealed prices rise for the Mersey Tunnels in 2026.
Subject to full Combined Authority agreement, from April 1 city region residents with a T-FLOW account will see tunnel fares increase by 10p to £1.60. The cash toll and non-city region resident T-FLOW toll will also increase by 10p to £2.40.
This change would mean city region residents – who account for 51% of journeys – would pay more than £1 less than the maximum amount authorised under the Tunnels Act, which is expected to stand at £2.90.
It is also proposed that the cost of the young person’s MyTicket, which allows all-day unlimited bus travel for under-19s, will be frozen for the ninth year running at £2.20 – remaining one of the cheapest child tickets in the country.
And local residents will continue receiving free travel passes at 60 – seven years ahead of the national scheme.
Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram said: “Whether you’re travelling by bus, train, or car, we want to make getting around our region as fair, accessible, and affordable as possible- all while tackling rising costs and driving forward major improvements.
“Local residents will continue to enjoy some of the cheapest travel prices anywhere in the country, the most generous concessionary travel scheme in the country – and for under-19s, we’ve held the cost of a MyTicket at just £2.20 for the ninth year running.
“And the really big changes are just around the corner. From next year, you’ll start to feel the difference as we take back control of our buses, beginning in St Helens and Wirral – putting power back into the hands of passengers.”
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Under the Tunnels Act legislation tunnel tolls are allowed to rise in line with inflation. However the CA can consider economic and social factors when setting tolls – and has consistently used its power to keep tolls as low as possible for all users.
The Queensway (Birkenhead) and Kingsway (Wallasey) tunnels have a combined age of almost 150 years and require millions of pounds each year to help keep them open and safe.
In recent years, investments include an £11m LED lighting upgrade to the Queensway Tunnel which mirrored a similar project completed in the Kingsway Tunnel in 2018 at a cost of £7.5m – reducing the carbon output by 60%.
A further improvement saw the replacement of 36 jet fans which keep fresh air flowing throughout the Kingsway Tunnel at a cost of £1.5m.