A shadow toll is a contractual payment made by a government per driver using a road to a private company that operates a road built or maintained using private finance initiative funding. Payments are based, at least in part, on the number of vehicles using a section of road, often over a 20- to 30-year period. The shadow tolls or per vehicle fees are paid directly to the company without intervention or direct payment from the users.

On more recent shadow toll schemes in the United Kingdom, payments reduce as the number of vehicles increases, to encourage availability of the road rather than the number of vehicles carried.

Criticism

The World Bank observes that transaction costs 'can be very high' due to the difficulties surrounding legal arrangements and the need for continuous vehicle counts and that use of shadow tolls has led to significant criticism in The Netherlands.

The Portuguese government removed shadow tolls in 2004 after finding that "payment obligations in connection with the shadow toll system were not compatible with the need to spend on improving and maintaining the other national motorways".

List of shadow toll roads

Europe

;United Kingdom

  • M1 Lofthouse to Bramham link road
  • M40 Denham to Warwick
  • M80 Stepps to Haggs
  • A1 Darrington to Dishforth
  • A1(M) Alconbury to Peterborough
  • A13 Limehouse to Wennington (Greater London)
  • A19 Dishforth to Tyne Tunnel
  • A249 Stockbury (M2) to Sheerness
  • A30 / A35 Exeter to Bere Regis
  • A417 Gloucester to Cirencester
  • A419 Swindon to Cirencester
  • A55 Llanfairpwll to Holyhead
  • A69 Carlisle to Newcastle

;Belgium

  • A605 / E25 Cointe Tunnel

;Finland

  • VT4 / E75 Järvenpää-Lahti

;Netherlands

  • A9 Wijkertunnel

;Spain

  • Madrid M-45 Road
  • Rande Bridge

Oceania

;Australia

  • Peninsula Link: Victoria, Australia

Middle East

;Israel

  • Highway 431

North America

;Canada

  • New Brunswick Highway 2 Fredericton to Moncton

See also

  • Toll road
  • Highways Agency

References

  • About DBFO UK Highways Agency
  • DBFO UK Highways Agency
  • Summary of UK Parliamentary questions relating to DBFO roads UK Highways Agency
  • Design Build Finance Operate Federal Highways Administration
  • All that money growing on trees FT.com blog March 2012
  • Criticism of A1 Darlington to Dishforth scheme

External websites in relation to North American shadow tolls

  • A GUIDEBOOK TO THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE FOR STATE, LOCAL, TERRITORIAL, AND TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS