TOLLS on the Itchen Bridge are set to be increased due to inflation and operating costs, Southampton City Council has said.

Car, van and small 4x4 drivers will be hit by a £1 fee in peak periods, up from 80p - the off-peak cost will go from 70p to 80p.

Electric vehicles will no longer be exempt from tolls and will have to pay to cross the bridge.

The council - which has launched a consultation on the fees - said the toll costs cover the bridge's maintenance and act as a way of trying to control congestion in Woolston.

But it said a local authority having sole responsibility for a bridge of this size is 'unusual' and it gets no cash from Government for maintenance.

In February the council said it would spend £3.8m on drainage, surfacing and sucidie prevention work on the bridge.

READ MORE: Southampton council confirms what £3.8m Itchen Bridge money will go on

Any resident with a Smart Cities card will not see an increase. The toll at peak period will be kept at 40p, while off-peak will stay at 30p.

The £25 charge for lorries and £1.40 charge for large vans will remain unchanged.

A council statement on the increases said: "This challenging decision has been made as a result of increased operating costs and rising inflation.

"Part of the reason for the toll is to manage the volume of traffic crossing the bridge and to prompt drivers travelling from outside of the city to give meaningful consideration to their choice of route."

It added: "The council proposes removing the Itchen Bridge concession for electric vehicles.

"This was put in place on a temporary basis, as part of a package of measures to promote the use of electric vehicles as they began to emerge into the market.

"As this technology becomes more widely used, crossings of the Itchen Bridge by electric vehicles need to be managed in the same way as other vehicles in order to alleviate congestion along the associated routes."

Councillor Keogh, the Cabinet Member for Transport and District Regeneration said: “While a toll increase is required to ensure that traffic congestion in the Woolston area continues to be managed, in addition to providing funding for further maintenance, we are keen to ensure that this does not impact on the residents of Southampton at this difficult time.

"This is why we have once again kept the resident’s discount available at the same level, via the Smart Cities card.”

A consultation on the plans ends on January 6. See the consultation at transport.southampton.gov.uk