Non-taxable 1767 stone toll bridge for sale in England

Swinford Toll Bridge (STB), a beautiful functioning private toll bridge dating back to 1767 goes on sale at auction in London England December 6. A major London auction house Allsop is handling the sale. The bridge is located on the B4044, a 2-lane rural arterial just 8km (5 miles) to the west of the middle of Oxford, the famous university city.

Bridging the upper Thames River it has seven stone arch spans carrying a 20ft (6m) roadway of two tight lanes over the river. A nice stone toll collector's house from the same period conveys along with the bridge.

From a satellite picture we estimate the bridge is about 80m (260ft) long, about half of that over the normal spread of the river, the rest flood plain. It is obviously well-designed and well constructed since it has withstood floods over 242 years without major damage.

The B4044 is a popular route due west of Oxford.

The bridge collects tolls from 4m vehicles a year (10.9k/day) from a singe double-sided toll booth set between the two lanes of traffic. Two toll collectors can work the booth in peak times one each side. Out of peak hours one toll collector can handle both directions of traffic.

In practice they can't properly handle the traffic in peak hours!

Local reports say there are regularly backups - or 'tailbacks' as they say in Britain - half a mile to a mile (800m to 1.6km) long, and delays of up to half an hour.

An Act of Parliament in 1767 during the rign of George III gave the bridge developer the Earl of Abingdon "and his heirs and assignees" the right to collect tolls here "forever."

The Act also provided that the earnings of the toll bridge would be free of any tax - so no income or company tax is payable, no value added tax, and no estate duties.

There's one big, big downside however.

The UK Parliament controls toll rates by law and presently legal tolls are a joke - 5p or US 8.3c for cars.  There are higher tolls for trucks 50p or 80c but hardly any trucks use the bridge anyway because it's too narrow.

Toll revenue last year was a paltry pd190k  or $313k!

The Swinford Toll Bridge is therefore a case study in the idiocy of politically determined toll rates.

Toll should be pd1.25 or $2

If the average user in this quite affluent part of England earns pd30/hr or $50/hour then applying the rule of thumb that value of time is about half earnings then value of time saved around Oxford must average pd15/hr $25/hr.

So if the Swinford toll bridge saves motorists 5 minutes, then a trip across the bridge is worth pd1.25 or $2.

Reports of motorists regularly putting up with waits of half an hour suggests for the people in those queues at least the value of a trip is much higher - maybe pd7 ($10).

With a realistic market-based toll of say pd1.25 ($2) and traffic halved to say 2.5m/yr (6.8k/day) toll revenue would be pd3.2m/yr $5.2m/yr.

In return for market based tolls most people would be better off.

The toll operator would earn some serious revenues and the value of the bridge would be much higher than the pd1.25m ($2m) the auctioneers say they expect Dec 6. You'd have to guess it would be worth pd25m to pd35m ($35m to $50m) .

With real revenues the operator could invest in modern highway-speed toll equipment giving the toll point the same traffic capacity as the roadway on either side, so toll collection would no longer be a cause of delay.  there would be an assured revenue stream for restoration work and improvements.

Motorists would get faster more reliable trips.

In return for freedom to set market based toll rates the UK government could end the bridge's tax-free status. It would cease being a tax shelter for rich earls and dukes - an eccentricity.

But that apparently isn't going to happen any time soon because the present owners no doubt explored that.

Anyone bidding on the bridge under the present legislated toll of 5p (8c) has to contemplate net revenues of less than pd100k/yr ($170k). On the downside that income could be squeezed by a gradual rise in labor costs. All the upside prospects come from lobbying the British Parliament for more realistic toll rates. Count in the cost of a fulltime lobbyist!

Other private toll bridges in UK

A toll bridge from the same era is at Whitney-on-Wye, near Hay-on-Wye, the Wye river being the border between England and Wales. This was given a charter by Act of Parliament in 1774. Less well designed than the Swinford bridge the original Whitney-on-Wye bridge was washed away in floods as many as three times, but rebuilt to much the same design except that wooden sections made of a hardy African wood were used in later versions.

Another small private toll bridge is further downriver on the Thames from the Swinford bridge at  Whitchurch-on-Thames just west of Reading.

Also there are old private toll bridges at Batheaston on the northeastern outskirts of Bath, and the Byker Bridge over the Ouseburn in the middle of industrial Newcastle.

Most toll bridge charters in this time were granted to entrepreneurs who wanted to provide an improved service to a ferry. Some were ferry operators themselves. The ferry levied a toll to carry people, their horses, carts and carriages across the river, so it came naturally to transition to a toll bridge.

Most private American toll bridges were built in the 19th century. 1767 makes the Swinford toll bridge a seriously early toll bridge by US standards.

1767 in the American colonies

In the American colonies in 1767 the year when the Swinford Toll bridge opened George Washington veteran of the French and Indian wars, and planter in Mt Vernon VA wrote to Capel and Osgood Hanbury:

Mount Vernon 25th July 1767.

Gentn

Since mine of the 28th of June, last year, I have been favour'd with your two Letters of the 27th of March, first of July, and 21st of October in the past, and Sixth of April in the present year. [1] Had any thing material occurd--(worth giving you the trouble of a Letter)--I shoud not have been silent till this time; and even now, I have but little to say.

The Accounts Currt transmitted by Necks were right, otherwise I shoud have noted it sooner; [2] and by Easton you will receive two Tonns of Mr Custis's Tobacco, which when sold, you will please to carry to the credit of the Young Gentleman's Acct who falling very short in his Crops last year is the reason why Easton has only Eight Hhds of his Tobo this. [3]

From the present face of things, there appears to be an almost absolute certainty that the Crops of Tobacco this year will be shorter than has been for many past, which I mention, that if other Accts from different parts of this, and the other Tobo Colony corrispond with it you may regulate the Sales in such a manner as to obtain a good price for the Tobacco just Shipped. I coud wish that it was a practice, to render an Acct Currt of the dealings between us once a year, that if any Errors shoud arise they may be rectified while the Transactions are recent.

Unseasonable as it may be, to take any notice of the repeal of the Stamp Act at this time, yet, I cannot help observing that a contrary measure woud have Introduced very unhappy Consequences: those therefore who wisely foresaw this, and were Instrumental in procuring the repeal of it, are, in my opinion, deservedly entitled to the thanks of the well wishers to Britain and her Colonies; & must reflect with pleasure that through their means, many Scenes of confusion and distress have been avoided: Mine they accordingly have, and always shall have, for their opposition to any Act of Oppression, for that Act coud be looked upon in no other light by every person who woud view it in its proper colours.

I coud wish it was in my power to congratulate you with success, in having the Commercial System of these Colonies put upon a more enlargd and extensive footing than it is because I am well satisfied that it woud, ultimately, redound to the advantages of the Mother Country so long as the Colonies pursue trade and Agriculture, and woud be an effectual Let to Manufacturing among themselves--The Money therefore which they raise woud centre in Great Britain, as certain as the Needle will settle to the Poles. I am Gentn Yr Most Obedt Hble Servt
Go: Washington

Auctioneers for the Swinford toll bridge:

http://www.allsop.co.uk/articledetail2.aspx?nid=416

contact Neil Mackilligin at Allsop

tel 44 (0)20 7543 6702

email neil.mackilligin@allsop.co.uk

UPDATE: One source says that the procedure for a toll increase is to negotiate with the Oxfordshire County Council and the Eynsham Parish Council. Their recommendation may be forwarded to the UK Secretary of State for endorsement, bypassing the requirement for an Act of the UK Parliament. We attempted to get clarification from the Oxfordshire County Counil but they haven't responded.

TOLLROADSnews 2009-11-22 UPDATE 2009-11-25