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The operator of the M6 Toll road has been accused of not wanting LGVs to use the road after ramping up the truck fee by 14%. The Freight Transport Association says the increase to £8 "confirms that Midland Expressway clearly does not want LGV traffic on its road".

The FTA made the allegation following a meeting of the West Midlands Freight Council in Coventry last week. The association suggests  that the M6 Toll has never been a route of choice because of the exorbitant fees: "The dearth of commercial traffic using the route is directly attributed to the fees which have been imposed by the operator, and this forces lorries to use the existing M6 around Spaghetti Junction and through the heart of Birmingham, which is subject to delays on a daily basis."

Stephen Kelly, the FTA's head of policy for the Midlands, says: "It is a sorry state of affairs that such a free-flowing road is currently operating nowhere near its full capacity."

The FTA campaigned strongly for the M6 Toll to be built, but it had hoped for a truck toll of between £3 and £4.

But Tom Fanning, MEL chief executive, says: "The number of lorries using the M6 toll has risen steadily since we opened in December 2003. We believe the trend will continue as companies realise, and benefit from, the value of shorter, more reliable journey times."

Barry Proctor, of Midlands-based Barry Proctor  Services, warns that his firm will close its account with MEL if there's another increase: "I am not happy that they have increased the prices. It is getting back to the level where we wouldn't use it."