A pay-as-you-drive road network is "inevitable", Ruth Kelly said today as the government signalled its determination to press ahead with a national road pricing scheme.
Road pricing, which could see motorists charged up to £1.30 per mile to travel in congested areas, became one of the most controversial policies of Tony Blair's reign after nearly two million people signed an online petition against it.
Speaking at a Labour conference fringe meeting in Bournemouth this morning, Ms Kelly, the transport secretary, said that a pay-as-you-drive system would emerge because the economic cost of increased congestion would spiral otherwise.
"Ultimately some of road pricing is inevitable," she said.
However, Ms Kelly said that a road pricing system, which would be driven by a series of smaller schemes being considered by local authorities across England, was still a long-term prospect.
The first road user charging scheme outside of London is due to launch in Manchester in 2012 at the earliest.
"We are looking for local schemes to come forward. But these decision are quite far away. What do we do now about the challenges we face?" she asked.
"And can we increase [road] capacity and deal with congestion in a much more cost-effective way than we do at the moment?"
Ms Kelly hinted that a scheme in operation on the M42 outside Birmingham, where the hard shoulder is opened to traffic during busy periods, could be rolled out across the country.
"I have been attracted by the scheme on the M42. It improves reliability, it increases capacity and it is much better value for money."
A report last year by Sir Rod Eddington, a former chief executive of British Airways, said that road pricing could bring economic benefits worth around £25bn per year by 2025.
However, many of the ten areas and local authorities interested in road pricing - including Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle - have all stated that significant investment in public transport must come before any road pricing scheme.
