M6 Toll history and price evolution
From £2 on opening day in December 2003 to £12.00 in July 2026, an increase of 500% over 23 years. The story of the UK's only fully tolled motorway.
Opening day£2.009 December 2003
Current rate£12.003-zone car, contactless
Total rise500%2003 to 2026
Price evolution timeline
Dec 2003£2.00
Opens to traffic on 9 December 2003
Aug 2004£3.00
Jun 2005£3.50
Jan 2008£4.50
Jan 2009£4.70
Mar 2010£5.00
Mar 2011£5.30
Mar 2012£5.50
Aug 2017£5.90
Two months after IFM Investors bought the road
Jul 2021£7.00
Aug 2022£7.60
Aug 2023£8.60
Oct 2023£8.90
May 2024£9.70
Three-zone pricing and the Breeze account start on 13 May 2024
Jan 2025£9.90
3 January 2025
Apr 2025£10.30
4 April 2025
Jul 2025£10.50
7 July 2025
Jan 2026£11.40
6 January 2026
Apr 2026£11.60
2 April 2026
Jul 2026£12.00
7 July 2026, the current rate
Key milestones
1980Route options for the Birmingham Northern Relief Road, a bypass of the congested M6 through Birmingham, go out to consultation.
1991Midland Expressway Limited (MEL) wins the 53-year concession to design, build, finance and operate the road.
1997Decision to go ahead, after a second public inquiry in 1994 to 1995.
2000Site clearance starts.
Summer 2002Major construction begins. Pulped books, reported by the BBC at the time to include Mills & Boon novels, were mixed into the road surface.
Dec 2003Road opens to traffic at £2 for a car.
Mar 2004Norton Canes services opens, operated by Roadchef.
2010Macquarie Infrastructure Group splits; the road passes to Macquarie Atlas Roads.
Jun 2017IFM Investors buys the concession from Macquarie Atlas Roads.
2023GLIL Infrastructure buys a 25% stake (January) and the road is brought into Aleatica, IFM's toll-road group. In December the operator announces a £20 million technology investment in number-plate cameras and new contactless readers.
May 2024Three-zone pricing and the Breeze account start on 13 May 2024.
Nov 2025Lite account launched: deposit-free, billed by number-plate camera, at the standard rates.
2054Concession expires and the road is handed back to the government.
Construction facts
- Build cost: about £900 million, as widely reported when it opened.
- Length: 27 miles (43 km) of dual three-lane motorway.
- Books in the tarmac: Pulped books, including Mills & Boon novels according to the BBC's December 2003 report, were mixed into the road surface.
- Construction time: About 18 months from the start of major works in summer 2002 to opening in December 2003.
- Concession: runs to 2054, when the road is handed back to the government.
Traffic over time
The Highways Agency's one-year study in 2005 found about 50,000 vehicles a day, against a prediction of 74,000. Traffic fell to around 30,500 a day in 2012. In 2023 it was back to about 48,500 a day, according to the operator's accounts as reported by City AM in September 2024.
History FAQ
When did the M6 Toll open?
9 December 2003. It was the first major privately financed and operated motorway in the UK and remains the only fully tolled motorway in the country.
Who owns the M6 Toll?
Operationally, Midland Expressway Limited (MEL) holds the concession until 2054. Ownership has changed hands several times: Macquarie Infrastructure Group, then Macquarie Atlas Roads, then IFM Investors from June 2017. Since January 2023 IFM's Global Infrastructure Fund holds 75% and GLIL Infrastructure 25%, and the road is run as part of Aleatica, IFM's toll-road group.
Why has the M6 Toll price gone up so much?
The toll has risen from £2 in 2003 to £12.00 in 2026 for a car making the full route, an increase of around 500% in 23 years. The road is privately operated, the operator sets its own tolls with no government cap, and it now reviews prices quarterly. There were three increases in 2026 alone: 6 January, 2 April and 7 July.
What happens to the M6 Toll in 2054?
When the 53-year concession expires, the road reverts to public ownership. Whether the toll is removed, retained or replaced with a different funding model is a decision for the government of the day. As things stand it remains the UK's only fully tolled motorway.