Revealed! The shock amount Tyne Tunnel made on overpayments before controversial cashless switch

Recent changes to the tunnel will scupper surplus payments as a source of income.
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The Tyne Tunnel was making an average of £20,500 every month from surplus payments made by cash at toll booths before the recent cashless change.

It costs motorists £1.90 to cross the river via the tunnel and, up until earlier this month, that fee could be paid with cash.

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With no change being given by the toll booths, drivers would often choose to pay £2 to use the tunnel, rather than fishing around to find the exact 90 pence.

After a Freedom of Information request by NewcastleWorld.com, it has emerged that the tunnel generated an eye-watering revenue of £20,500 per month just from those surplus payments.

That 12-month average added up to a total of £266,512 since October 2020.

At its peak, in November 2020, £23,197 was made from surplus payments.

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The month with the lowest sum generated was March 2021, when £16,147 was made.

Ever since Monday, November 8 the Tyne Tunnel has run on a new cashless system.

Motorists must now pay in advance of their travel, or by midnight the day after completing their trip.

Despite a recent survey conducted by this site showing that 52.2% of users believed the cashless change was a way of generating extra revenue through fines, it also means the Tyne Tunnel will no longer benefit from overpayment revenue.

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The tunnel cited time-saving and environmental reasons as being at the heart of the cashless move.

There are big changes coming to the Tyne Tunnel (Image: Shutterstock)There are big changes coming to the Tyne Tunnel (Image: Shutterstock)
There are big changes coming to the Tyne Tunnel (Image: Shutterstock)

The North East Combined Authority owns the infrastructure of the Tyne Tunnel.

The Tyne Tunnel says it collects tolls to pay for the tunnel's construction, which was self-funded when constructed.

The website states: "As a private road it is vital that tolls continue to be collected to cover the costs to pay for the operation and maintenance of the tunnels."

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