Severn TAG

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The Severn TAG logo, used at toll collection area to indicate a TAG payment lane Severn TAG logo.png
The Severn TAG logo, used at toll collection area to indicate a TAG payment lane

The Severn TAG was a payment system for collecting bridge tolls for drivers using either the Severn Bridge Crossing or the Second Severn Crossing over the Severn Estuary between England and Wales.

Contents

The system was made by Amtech but was replaced in 2008 by a new system made by CS Eng. To use the system, drivers must place the Tag transponder on their windscreen to identify their vehicle as they drive through the toll lane. Lanes through the toll booths are dedicated as either Tag (unstaffed), cash (staffed) or automatic debit/credit card only.

Severn TAG types

There are three types of Severn TAG [1]

All types of Tag require a £30 Deposit. If the tag is lost or stolen, a replacement is issued after payment of another £30 deposit.

Limitations and drawbacks

The Season TAG could only be used with one registered vehicle, this prevented misuse, however it complicated matters for two car families, users who regularly changed vehicles or those who have courtesy vehicles etc. This was judged a misuse which can result in a Severn River Crossing "Fine" of £25+VAT. [3]

The tags regularly became faulty, and the user could not tell if the tag was faulty until they reached the lane. [4] Whereupon the reader would issue the message "Tag Error" the barrier remains closed and the lane is then blocked. At the Second Severn Crossing with a dedicated "high speed" Tag lane, this could cause a large queue to build up quickly, whilst an attendant would have been called to deal with the faulty tag.

Until January 2016, it was not possible to add funds into a Trip Tag account online, or with a credit or debit card, although it ultimately became possible to top up a Trip Tag balance online, [5] though Trip Tags could not be set to top up automatically when the account balance fell below a set threshold ("auto top-up" as is possible with e.g. the Oyster card and similar electronic tags used on the M6 Toll [6] and Dartford Crossing [7] ).

In July 2017 it was announced that all tolls on the bridge would be abolished, [8] As announced on 2 October 2018, tolls were scrapped on 17 December 2018. [9]

See also

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References

  1. "SRC Website". Tag Introduction. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  2. "Top Up Tag" . Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  3. "Season Tag Terms and Conditions of Use" (PDF). PDF Document. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  4. "Severn crossing firm runs out of Severn Tags". South Wales Argus.
  5. "Home - Trip tag top up - Severn Bridges". www.severnbridge.co.uk. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  6. "M6toll - Stress Free Motoring - Tags". www.m6toll.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  7. "Dart Charge: Dartford Crossing remote payment". GOV.UK.
  8. Slawson, Nicola (2017-07-21). "Severn crossings tolls to be scrapped next year". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2017-08-20.
  9. "Severn tolls to be axed earlier than planned on 17 December". BBC News Online. 2018-10-02. Retrieved 2018-10-02.