If you use a toll in Europe, Tunisia, Philippines and many other places it is clearly signed and typically there is a toll booth to ensure you pay. Here both points are lacking, especially the second. As normal government entities as well as private firms like supermarket (checkouts) are trying to automate everything to save money. There is of course likely another sinister reason. With no toll booth many people like me do not even notice I am on a toll road/bridge/tunnel or forget to pay the toll within about three or days. Hmm. A great way of generating outrageous fines!
We allegedly used the toll section on a Sunday last month which means we should pay the off-peak fee of £1.50. £4 for peak and you can setup auto pay if you use it a lot which wouldn’t be me since I did not even notice where I was. £1.50 is a fair price and £4 is okish. On the 7th April this year charges were only introduced despite half of the tunnel being opened in Victorian times.
So, you would imagine the fine would have some leniency or be fair. No, nothing is in this greedy country. You would imagine maybe you would get a warning or fine you 10x only. £180, or £90 if you pay within 14 days. 60x is the charge for this or 120x for the £180. The price goes up to £270 if you do not pay within 28 days.
With a good chance I used the toll tunnel, and I never saw the signs, I paid the £90 the next day which is the “cheap” fine. Funnily enough my bank blocked my payment twice and 30 seconds later I got a text message from them which read:
“Re: Did you use your credit card ending 0*** on 04-09-2025 13:03:10, at TFL ROAD CHG-PENALTY W for £90.00? Reply YES if you asked us to make this payment or NO if you didn't try to do that. If you don't reply we'll stop future card payments. We've stop...”
What else do we have to pay in this ultra greedy country?
- Parking fines
- Speeding fines
- Yellow box junction fines
- Red light fines
- Bus lane fines*
- ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone)
- Congestion charge
- Parking costs
- Airport drop off charges
- Shopping mall parking charges
- Road tax
- And an assortment of taxes with little ROI (return on investment)
The councils and central government are not there to serve, it is a corrupt, toxic, outsourced to death and business minded!
If you have travelled a lot like me, with my current list at 66 countries and many of these are odd places you will learn Eastern Europe (especially non-EU) and beyond work very differently. Barely anything I have listed above exists there with free parking even in city centres and free airport drop offs. Yet the central government tax can be 10-20% only and with no council tax but the country & municipalities look well run to me. Lord knows where the money vanishes into in Blighty.