The New South Wales government has revealed the price of tolls on both the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel will rise from the start of the next financial year as part of a “fairer toll road network for Sydney”.
On July 1, the extra revenue collected from the inflation-linked increase to the toll prices will go towards the NSW government’s toll relief scheme of the $60 toll cap.
It means a peak weekday toll to cross the harbour will now increase by 14 cents, or 3.2 per cent. It’s only the second time since 2009 that the bridge and tunnel tolls have increased after the former state government kept them static for three terms of government.
At the same time, the current government says motorists in car-dependent Western Sydney haven’t avoided annual or quarterly toll increases that make the price of a return peak hour weekday toll from Campbelltown or Liverpool to the CBD worth more than $35.
“A toll rise on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel remains a rare occurrence, with this marking only the second time in 16 years since they have gone up. In our city’s west they have gone up every quarter or every year,” NSW transport minister John Graham says.
“We are focused on delivering a fairer tolling network and this inflation-linked increase will go into toll relief that has become so important to motorists who pay the highest toll bills in the suburbs of Western Sydney.”
Toll relief has been a key cost-of-living focus for the current state government, with the government saying it comes due to the former Liberal government leaving behind a total toll bill of $195 billion in nominal terms that must be paid out by motorists to 2060.
The $60 toll cap is set to expire on January 1, 2026, with there currently being no news if it’ll be extended further.
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