Drivers on either side of the Warburton Toll Bridge that connects Cheshire with Lancashire say they are being unfairly penalised with fines, following the scrapping of the bridge’s notional 12p toll and the introduction of a digital system policed by CCTV and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras.Warburton Toll Bridge has connected Cheshire and Lancashire over the River Mersey for more than 160 years.

Now “free-flow”, the toll booth has been removed and the payment system digitised, with the charge rising to £1 as of November 2025, says the Daily Telegraph.

Those who fail to spot the toll’s warning signs, which stand under the dense foliage of the hedges and trees lining the single carriageway, face fines of up to £100.

Some even suspect the new online payment system is malfunctioning, claiming to have received fines despite never having been over the bridge or being hundreds of miles away at the time of their “crossing” and accusing operators of ignoring apparent tech issues.

Such is the level of concern that locals have resorted to protest, and politicians have been forced to intervene.

Since January 2026, a total of 138,000 “non-compliant” journeys across the bridge, east of Warrington, have been recorded, equivalent to around 900 per day, according to data from Peel Ports Group, the parent company of the Manchester Ship Canal Company, which operates the toll bridge.

Graham Parsons, the director of pharmacy at the charity Waythrough, was fined despite claiming to have been hundreds of miles away in Plymouth and “never going near the bridge”.

He said he believes that the ANPR camera system mistook a “C” on his licence plate for a “G”, which led to him receiving a penalty notice that was in fact triggered by someone else’s vehicle.

Mr Parsons said:

“My biggest concern is being fined for a toll on a bridge I have never been near and despite it being clear that it is not my car.”

He added that he was yet to receive a response to his appeal, but had become a member of the Warburton Toll Bridge Action Group, in which dozens of other motorists have shared similar stories.

Brenda Williams, runs the group. She claimed that there were hundreds of cases of “unwarranted” fines, including from those who “just simply hadn’t been here”.

“We’ve had cases with someone receiving a fine for crossing on a motorbike, who are not supposed to pay, or motorists who have Blue Badges getting notices, even though they’re supposed to be exempt. It’s just ridiculous. It’s making people frustrated and upset and something needs to be done to sort it out.”

Others who did cross the bridge said they were unaware of the toll. They claimed that the signs were not clear and there was little physical infrastructure to tell drivers that they are passing over a toll point because the bridge works on a “free-flow” basis.

Graham Gowland, of Warrington Borough Council, said the bridge had begun “penalising” residents, with his constituents receiving thousands of pounds in fines all at once.

He said:

“When you look back at the history, the man who originally built the bridge did so to make a better life for the people in Warburton and Lymm. It was a time when it meant people could trade with what was becoming a big industry on the north side of it, and it was being done for the public good, but suddenly we’ve found something that’s penalising us.”

Mr Gowland added:

“The system is just absurd. There’s no phone number that you can speak to a human being, there’s really very few emails, there’s no communication, there’s very little engagement with the public.

A spokesman for Peel Ports Group admitted to “genuine customer experience issues” resulting from the system on the part of both itself and Excel Parking, but denied that there was a “systemic failure of the scheme”.

Both Peel Ports Group and Excel Parking said they were committed to delivering a “fair, proportionate and transparent” process.

(Picture: WarburtonTollBridge.co.uk)