The Tyne Tunnel has marked a full year since its controversial switch to cashless toll payments.
It has been 12 months since the crossing’s old toll booths and barriers were ditched, in an effort to speed up journey times and reduce pollution levels. While transport bosses insist that the huge change has achieved its goals, it has been far from plain sailing for the new ‘ Tyne Pass ’ system.
Earlier this year it was branded an “absolute disaster” – with complaints about the new toll payment methods, “threatening” enforcement notices, and fines being wrongly issued to people living hundreds of miles away. However, figures revealed on the scheme’s first anniversary on Tuesday confirmed that the percentage of drivers successfully paying their toll by the deadline of midnight on the day after their journey has reached a new high.
