Manchester voters reject traffic congestion charge

London: Voters in Manchester have rejected proposals to introduce a traffic congestion charge, despite the offer of a £3 billion (Dh16.41 billion) investment in local public transport in compensation.

It was the second setback in recent weeks for traffic pricing in Britain after London announced last month it would be scrapping part of its congestion zone.

More than one million people voted in a Manchester referendum that threw out the plans when the results were announced yesterday.

Opponents had claimed the scheme would mean drivers paying an extra £100 a month.

Manchester businessman Robin Smith, of the "Stop The Charge" campaign, hailed the result.

"It just shows how out of touch the politicians who tried to impose this on us were," he told BBC television.

London introduced Britain's first traffic charging scheme in 2003.

Under Manchester's plans, drivers would have been charged up to £5 a day during peak hours from 2013.