Welsh firms are relocating to the Bristol area to avoid increases in tolls on the Severn Bridges, according to the boss of a Cardiff-based logistics company.
Prices to cross the M4 and M48 bridges, which are used by about 80,000 vehicles every day, rose on New Year's Day with HGVs now paying £19.20 to enter Wales – a 60p increase. 
Car tolls increased by 20p to £6.40 while small goods vehicles must now pay £12.80 – an increase of 40p.
Geoff Tomlinson, managing director of Cardiff-based Freight Systems Express (Wales), which employs 32 staff, told the BBC that the rises were forcing firms to relocate to the Bristol side of the Severn.
“An increase of 60p may only seem like a minimal amount, but for companies like ours it will have a big impact,” he said.
“In 2014 our annual Severn Bridge bill will be in the region of £200,000. A number of businesses in Wales have moved their offices across the bridge towards Bristol, which is a real kick for the Welsh economy at an already difficult time.”
He said his business had also started use rail to move goods as a way of cutting costs.
His comments came as the Freight Transport Association (FTA), which represents the logistics industry, called for the tolls to come down once the bridges come into public ownership.
They are run by privately-owned Severn River Crossing (SRC) plc but will pass to the UK Government once takings from tolls reach £996m at 1989 prices. The company’s concession is forecast to end in 2018.
FTA head of policy for Wales and the South West, Ian Gallagher, said: “As we look to the future, it is clear that the method by which the Severn Crossings were funded is not a suitable blueprint for new infrastructure projects, and we would call for Government to steer well clear of any similar schemes.”
In a statement, Severn River Crossing said it amended the tolls at the start of each year in “strict compliance” with the Severn Bridges Act 1992 and in accordance with inflation.
