Government agrees to halve Humber Bridge tolls

The Humber Bridge cost £150m to build and was opened in 1981

The government has confirmed tolls on the Humber Bridge are to be cut in half.

Chancellor George Osborne agreed to reduce the bridge's debt by £150m, meaning a single crossing for a car will go down to £1.50 from £3.

It was also announced that safety improvements would be made to four roundabouts on the A164 between the Humber Bridge and Beverley.

The decisions were unveiled as part of the National Infrastructure plan.

The Humber Bridge opened in 1981 and has an outstanding debt of £330m after it was financed with a £150m government loan, which rose due to interest.

The toll was raised from £2.70 to £3 in October, making it the most expensive crossing fee for a return journey in the UK.

Mr Osborne paid tribute to local MPs for their work in campaigning for a toll reduction.

He said: "I want to pay tribute to my honourable friends the members for Beverley and for Brigg and Goole for campaigning with other local MPs over many years to make this happen.

"Under the government it has."

The government said the Humber would also become an official centre for renewable energy and an enterprise zone would be created in Grimsby.

Other benefits as part of the announcement include improvements to the A18-A180 in North East Lincolnshire, which acts as a bypass for Immingham.