M6 Toll T1 to T2 cost
The shortest paid segment on the M6 Toll: T1 at Coleshill to T2 at Bassetts Pole, around 5 miles entirely within Zone 1. £6.70 for a car contactless, £4.00 on Breeze. Used almost exclusively by Sutton Coldfield-area commuters bypassing the Birmingham M6.
T1 to T2 prices
| Vehicle | Standard | Breeze |
|---|---|---|
| Motorbike | £3.80 | £2.00 |
| Car | £6.70 | £4.00 |
| Car + trailer / van | £10.20 | £6.00 |
| HGV / coach | £14.10 | £9.00 |
The Sutton Coldfield commuter case
T2 at Bassetts Pole sits on the A446 just north of Sutton Coldfield. For workers based in Sutton Coldfield (the largest part of the BS town suburbs) and commuting to the NEC, Birmingham Business Park, Birmingham Airport or anywhere on the M42 corridor, the T1-to-T2 segment is a daily Spaghetti-Junction bypass that pays for itself in stress reduction alone.
The alternative free route (A446 south to A38 to Spaghetti Junction to A45 to NEC) can take 50 to 70 minutes at peak times. The £4 Breeze T1-to-T2 commute, by contrast, is 5 to 8 minutes. The time gain alone makes the commute viable, the cost is the price of the option.
The Sutton Coldfield daily Breeze maths
- £4 each way, 2 trips per day, 5 days a week: £40 per week
- 52 weeks per year: £2,080
- vs Standard rate: £67 per week, £3,484 per year
- Annual Breeze saving on a daily 1-zone commute: £1,404
- Hours saved per year: around 300 hours at the £14-hour-equivalent
Free alternative: A446 to Sutton Coldfield
The A446 itself, north from T1, goes through Wishaw and connects to the M42 J9 area. It is the road you would use to access T1 from the free side. From Bassetts Pole heading to Coleshill, the A446 south is the natural free routing. It is a dual-carriageway A-road with traffic-light controlled junctions, slow at peak times.
- Off peak: A446 is fine, around 10 minutes. £6.70 is hard to justify.
- Peak (07:30-09:30 and 17:00-19:00): A446 backs up at the Wishaw and Curdworth junctions. M6 Toll saves 10 to 15 minutes.
- Incident on A38 / Spaghetti Junction: A446 stays moving but feeders are congested. M6 Toll is the only reliable option.
T1 to T2 in numbers
| Metric | T1 to T2 | T1 to T8 (full route) |
|---|---|---|
| Length | around 5 miles | 27 miles |
| Drive time | 5 to 8 minutes | 25 to 30 minutes |
| Zones crossed | 1 | 3 |
| Car standard | £6.70 | £11.60 |
| Car Breeze | £4.00 | £9.80 |
| Cost per mile (standard) | £1.34 | £0.43 |
| Toll plaza in this segment? | No (T1-T2 is before the southbound plaza) | Yes (you pass at least one) |
T1-to-T2 is the most expensive per-mile segment but also the most peak-time-valuable for the niche Sutton Coldfield commuter audience that uses it.