A plan to make a River Mersey crossing the first in Britain to be tolled after it was built as a free bridge, has been blasted by campaigners.
A public inquiry into the Mersey Gateway scheme at Runcorn has heard calls for a complete re-think with a warning that tolls will blight lives and the local economy.
The National Alliance Against Tolls (NAAT) says it backs the idea of a new crossing over the River Mersey to ease congestion but insists journeys should remain free of charge.
The original plan for the Mersey Gateway envisaged a new toll-free crossing at Runcorn.
But when the Government refused to approve funding for the scheme planners came-up with an alternative for a tolled bridge built under a Private Finance Initiative.
That scheme calls for tolls to be imposed not only on a new bridge but also on the existing Silver Jubilee Bridge, which was built with taxpayers' money.
NAAT spokesman John McGoldrick said there was no record of a similar phenomenon anywhere in Britain.
He told the Mersey Gateway Public Inquiry that the proposal for stiff tolls on cars and trucks should be scrapped.
Mr McGoldrick told the inquiry: "The opposition and hatred of tolls goes back to the Magna Carta in 1215 which described tolls as 'evil'.
"Tolls are a regressive tax which takes no account of the ability to pay or the size of a car. The driver of an old Mini is forced to pay the same toll as the driver of a new Mercedes.
"The proposals being considered at this Inquiry are particularly iniquitous as they involve the first ever imposition of a toll on a free bridge.
"Halton will be the first local authority in Britain where you will not be able to move from one side to the other without paying a toll tax.
"A new bridge was originally intended to improve communications and remove any constraint on cross river travel but the council have completely lost the plot.
"Instead, the plan now is that, when the bridge opens, in there will actually be less traffic crossing the river - on both bridges.
"A combination of the reduced cross-river traffic and the tolls will be an economic and social disaster for the region and particularly for the people of Halton.
"Businesses will find that employees, suppliers and customers are reluctant to pay a toll to reach them.
"People on low incomes will think twice before paying a toll to visit family and friends."
Mr McGoldrick said the plan for roads leading to the new bridge means most cross-river and heavy traffic will be routed through residential areas.
He said: "The traffic will be routed along the Central Expressway which will be changed beyond its intended purpose to try to cope with the weight of traffic.
"The hard shoulder will be consumed and increased noise and emissions will be brought right into the centre of residential areas.
"In order to sweeten this poisoned chalice, the Council at one stage were saying that their aim was that local people would not have to pay a toll.
"This was later changed to promises of a 'discount'.
"But the Council cannot say what this discount will be. Apparently this is because they have to agree this discount with the private operator who will control both the new bridge and the existing bridge, which the Council will hand over to them.
"Apart from not knowing what this discount might be there is a bigger problem in that no one knows what the tolls will be anyway.
"The Council are asking the Government to agree that the tolls for a car to make a return journey across the river could be anywhere between two pounds and five pounds.
"This would make the bridges the third most expensive tolled crossing in Britain.
"How strange that people should be given the sop of a discount when they are currently able to cross the river without paying anything other than the normal road taxes."
"The authorities and Government seem to be hell bent on imposing more perverse tolls wherever it can, without regard to the economic, social and environmental damage that they inflict and do not seem to care that they are committing political suicide.
"Cosmetic changes to this plan will achieve nothing. The inspector should should recommend to the Minister that this scheme be rejected."
The project would be joint-funded by central Government and the private sector, through a Private Finance Initiative (PFI), with about 77% coming from private backers.
It could open as soon as 2014 with the one way tolls for cars costing around £2-50p and HGVs paying as much as £10 each way.
The public inquiry, chaired by Mr Alan Gray at the Stobart Stadium, is expected to last for four weeks.
It will hear evidence from the scheme promoters, Halton Borough Council, experts and opponents including NAAT, local residents and environmentalists.
Halton Council leader Cllr Tony McDermott has described the project as vital for the social and economic future of the region.
In his submission cllr McDermott said: "The proposals before the inquiry are supported by extensive investigation and assessment of alternatives, exploring different routes for the new crossing and also looking into public transport and travel demand as solutions to the acute failure of the Silver Jubilee Bridge.
"I feel confident that we have developed the best solution, which is economic, it fits the environment and it is deliverable within the funding terms we have agreed with Government.
"The project has the potential to kick-start regeneration in the borough. Research, carried out by the project team, shows the proposed new bridge and associated regeneration activity will help to bring a number of major benefits to the region."
The Mersey Gateway scheme proposes a new tolled bridge over the Mersey, between the Central Expressway in Runcorn and Eastern Bypass in Widnes.
The existing Silver Jubilee Bridge, which will also be tolled, will be "de-linked" from trunk roads, intended for use only by local traffic, pedestrians and cyclists.
After hearing evidence the inspector will then make a recommendation to the Secretary of State for Transport on whether the proposal should be approved.
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