It comes seven months after the crossing charges were increased
Alison Stephenson Local Democracy Reporter
06:00, 09 Dec 2025
Tamar Bridge(Image: Alison Stephenson)
A 150 per cent increase in the monthly admin charge to users of the Tamar Crossings TAG discount scheme has been agreed seven months after toll fees went up to plug a hole in the finances.
Members of the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee voted for the standing charge for having a TAG account to rise from 80p a month to £2 at their meeting on Friday (December 5).
TamarTAG is a prepaid electronic tolling system that offers 50 per cent discount on tolls.
In May users saw a 20p increase in the toll charge to £1.50 and car and vans without a TAG now have to pay £3 to cross from Cornwall into Devon via the bridge or ferry.
The Tamar Toll Action Group, which was formed in 2022 to try and get tolls abolished, said the admin fee rise would not be good for “any resident or business reliant on crossing the Tamar to go about their daily lives”.
“Twenty-four pounds a year just for the convenience of having a TAG account is more than local account holders subscribed to the residents schemes for the Dartford and Mersey crossings pay for an entire year of crossings,” it said.
The annual income from TAG accounts will go from £460,000 to £1.15 million in 2026/27 as a result of the increase.
The group who watched the debate unfold on Friday said one councillor was advocating for £5 a month and/or charge per TAG on the account.
“With representation like that, it is increasingly difficult to have faith in the system when the very people elected to represent us are instead complicit in turning the screws on us instead of driving the organisation to control their costs and reduce their spending,” they said.
Income from tolls pays for the operation, maintenance and improvement of the Tamar Bridge and ferry which are managed by Plymouth City Council and Cornwall Council through the joint committee.
May’s increase in tolls was given the go ahead by the transport secretary after a recommendation from the committee to stablise finances over the next four years.
A £44 million debt was growing by £200,000 a month, it said.
It blamed struggling finances on rising inflation, higher maintenance costs and fewer people using the crossings since Covid.
Longer term aims are for greater discounts for local people, tolls to rise in line with inflation and ultimately the Tamar Bridge to be financed by the government.
A report to Friday’s meeting said there had been an increase in expenditure of £57,000 for Tags and accessories as a direct result of an increase in Tag users and the need to replace lost or damaged tags.
Committee member Cllr Chris Wood (Con, Plymouth) said on Facebook he didn’t vote in favour of this proposal as he wasn’t comfortable with the increase.
“I am someone who wholeheartedly believes the bridge should become toll free and remain committed to this,” he said.
Comments to his post included: “Wales made it free with a much bigger bridge”
“Crossing should be cheaper for locals, fair enough charging holiday makers but not locals.”
“Three hundred thousand pounds a year for the visitor centre and £40,000 for a marketing manager, there’s nothing to market! The Tamar Bridge and ferry has one to job, get us over the river. If the visitor centre is vital then national rail and the two councils should be funding.”
“The bridge should be toll-free and the Torpoint Ferry should be replaced with a tunnel or a lifting bridge. The claim that Plymouth Citybus is the first operator to put an electric bus on a ferry is not something to be proud of, nor is it a matter of civic pride that we have the most heavily used chain ferry in the world. Instead, it shows we are centuries behind the rest of the world with our outdated technology.”
The Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee has so far not commented on the decision but a Tamar Crossings spokesperson said: “Tamar Crossings is currently reviewing Tag administration fees as part of ongoing discussions within the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee. Further information will be shared at a suitable time, with plenty of notice provided to all users ahead of any changes. We appreciate the public’s patience while this process is underway.”
