From P.J. Scott:-

FURTHER to your article (Globe, September 29) about the cost of the Mersey Tunnels, these are just a few points which are not generally known:-

1: Merseytravel have in their 'wisdom' decided to offer the Mersey Tunnels on a franchise basis to a private company which will pay at least £50 million to operate the tunnels for the next 20 years.

The driving force behind the decision is based on VFM (Value For Money). Surely to privatise the tunnels is a pure contradiction of VFM? The only people the private company are bothered about are its shareholders for the profits it will make out of the tunnels.

2: The Mersey Tunnels are currently operating at a profit, paying the debts incurred, running costs (ie: maintenance, policing and tolls etc). The tunnels take approximately £27 million a year.

3: On the above figures, the loss incurred to local economy, business etc over a 20 year period will be well in excess of £100 million. Is this value for money for the local council tax payers of Merseyside as a whole?

4: As and when the franchise comes into existence, it can put up tolls as 10p units - ie not just 10p or 20p, but what it deems fit - to run at a profit for itself and not for the owners of the tunnel, ie: the council tax payers, like myself, of Merseyside.

Litherland Avenue, Moreton.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.