A call to temporarily suspend the Humber Bridge tolls has been made as coronavirus stifles the economy - with only essential journeys now supposedly being made on the region’s roads.
The proposal is three-fold, with the easing on pockets and removal of the potential to pass on the virus through toll operations, as well as helping ensure social distancing with the avoidance of public transport.
Carl Bradley, director of Hessle-based Clark Weightman, a pan-Humber operational chartered surveyors’ office, said: “It is a regional landmark and such a step would underline several points.
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“Virtually all businesses are struggling, and they incur a cost whether they are being paid by customers or not. Fruit and vegetables, the likes of Jackson’s Bakery and many seafood operators, must still be using it on a daily basis.
“We are trying to be responsible as a business, but are still incurring costs on the bridge.
“There are also key workers heading to the Hull hospitals, people who have chosen to live on the other side of the river.”
It is not without precedent, London has lifted the congestion charge and low emission zones, though that is an environmental measure, whereas the £1.50 car crossing is paying off a major debt.
A spokesperson for the Humber Bridge Board said: “The Humber Bridge will continue to provide our service to the public and business whilst ensuring we minimise the risk to our staff and all our users from the coronavirus.
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“Government has made no change in what the bridge board is expected to do, therefore we will continue to operate. To do this, we need to continue paying off the debt and meet the day-to-day running costs of the bridge by collecting the tolls either by Tag or by payment at the booths.
“We would like to remind Humber Bridge users to pay by contactless methods wherever possible.”
Mr Bradley, who hails from the South Bank but has settled in single daily exercise routine range away from the North Tower, is not the first commercial property agent to suggest a new way forward, if not quite as dramatic.
Malcolm Scott, founder of Scotts, made what was at the time described as “an audacious bid” to buy the Humber Bridge for £100m back in 2011, in exchange for wiping out a £332m debt that he said was having a crippling effect on the Humber region’s economy. He failed, but his campaign - aligned to the Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce’s effort - eventually led to tolls being halved.