Faster Tamar Bridge card readers 'easing traffic'

New contactless card readers were installed at the six booths in Plymouth in September

New card machines are helping to lower congestion and journey times at a Devon-Cornwall crossing, Tamar Bridge bosses say.

Tamar Crossings said contactless card readers installed in September had produced an average time of 6.5 seconds per transaction at the six toll booths on the Plymouth side of the bridge.

It said improvements were made to the system after research showed the average wait time for using card machines introduced at the tolls in 2020 was 17 seconds.

Bosses said the bridge dealt with more than 5,000 card transactions a day and it was hoped the quicker times would help traffic flow and ease congestion in Saltash.

A trial was held in one booth with the new card readers before the system was introduced across the rest of them, Tamar Crossings said.

It added the fastest transaction that had been recorded since the new readers were installed came in at two seconds.

A statement from joint-chairmen Martin Worth and Jon Dingle said: "This is very good news for everyone crossing the Tamar Bridge.

"Not only does it make the transaction quicker for those people who are paying by card but, by reducing the time they spend at the toll booth, it also speeds up journey times for everyone else as well."