Press Releases

The Tyne Crossings Alliance, which is campaigning against the construction of a second Tyne road tunnel, says that the PTA's claims that the construction of the tunnel would be wholly financed through a private finance initiative (PFI) does not show the whole picture.

"We now see in the PTA's application to the Secretary of State for Transport (Alastair Darling) that the PTA intends to apply for European funding," said Brian Paget of the Alliance. "This means that public money would be used to help build the toll road, but a private company (known as the Concessionaire) would collect and pocket the tolls".

"It's inconceivable that public money is going into a scheme where only a private company would benefit", continued Mr Paget. "It's bad enough using the flawed PFI model, where we have seen a catalogue of expensive failures. A prime example is the scandalous Skye Bridge project, where millions of pounds of public money went into building the bridge, but a foreign company collects the tolls. The proposed tunnel looks likely to follow suit".

Scarce local council funding resources would be required to pay for enhancements to local roads to support the tunnel and the extra traffic it would generate. This would include road widening, traffic control measures, and possibly new link roads such as the planned road through the Hebburn to Pelaw Riverside Park. "The PTA has been very coy on the subject of funding," said Bryan Paget, "and it's another example of where public funds would be used to benefit the private concessionaire company".

Instead of squandering millions of pounds of public money on a PFI profit-driven scheme geared to traffic increase, the PTA should act rationally and develop real public transport solutions aimed at traffic reduction, the Alliance suggests. Mr Paget continued, "If public money is to be used to finance cross Tyne travel, it should not be to help line the pockets of PFI fat cats, but for the development of public transport affordable by all."

People can expose the fallacies in the PTA's arguments by convincing Alastair Darling MP, the Secretary of State for Transport, to call for a Public Inquiry. Despite the PTA's having years to prepare the application, objectors have only until the 19th July to write to Mr. Darling at the Department of Transport stating their objections.