Lord Berkeleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
How the permission to build the Birmingham Northern Relief Road was obtained; who was the promoter; and when the current concessionaires assumed responsibility for the planning, development and construction of the road. [HL2394]
§ Lord Davies of OldhamThe M6 Toll Road (formerly the Birmingham Northern Relief Road) was constructed under the provisions of the Highways Act 1980 and went out to concession and is being tolled under the provisions of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991. Initially planned in the early 1980s as a publicly financed scheme, the M6 Toll was proposed by central government as a private financed scheme in 1989.
On 28 February 1992 a 53-year concession agreement was signed between the Secretary of State for Transport and Midland Expressway Limited (MEL) to privately finance, design, build and operate the new road. The road opened on budget and ahead of schedule on 9 December 2003.