THE LIBERAL Democrats pledged their support for The Courier’s Scrap the Tolls campaign yesterday when they launched a petition to abolish the £1 fee to cross the Forth.

Until yesterday, the party had been sitting on the fence in relation to the Forth Road Bridge toll.

Dunfermline and West Fife MP Willie Rennie said he had been reluctant to jump on the anti-tolls bandwagon because of concerns about congestion.

In particular, he wanted to hear evidence to support FETA’s claim that congestion would increase by 21% if tolls across the Forth were phased out.

The figure came from traffic modelling work carried out for the Scottish Executive and published in September 2004.

Mr Rennie said, “We challenged FETA to come up with evidence and we have heard no evidence to support the claim that traffic would increase by 21%.

“The formula used to calculate how congestion would be affected was too simple. You can’t translate the Kingston/Erskine formula over to the Kincardine/Forth or Tay/Friarton situation. All three are different.

“The bridge has been paid for and all the tolls in Scotland outside Fife have been abolished so it’s time for the tolls to go now. There is a deep sense of injustice in Fife about the tolls so they should go.”

Mr Rennie has teamed up with Lib Dem councillor for Garvock and Carnegie, Jim Tolson. They plan to post 30,000 leaflets, in a tabloid newspaper form, through the doors of residents, asking them to show their support for the campaign by signing a petition.

Mr Tolson said, “It is clear that there is little credible evidence to support the retention of the tolls on the bridge.

“Even the claims that traffic would increase by 21% if the tolls were removed has been found wanting. I urge all residents in Dunfermline and west Fife to show their support for the campaign by signing the petition. The more support we get the greater chance we have of abolishing the tolls.”

He added, “We will be pressing the transport minister, the First Minister and anybody we can about the need for a replacement crossing as soon as possible.”

Labour MSP for Dunfermline West, Scott Barrie welcomed the Lib Dems’ announcement.

He said, “It is now up to Willie Rennie MP and Jim Tolson to convince party leaders Nicol Stephen and transport minister Tavish Scott of this argument given that they still follow the party line of retaining tolls.

“It is my personal view, and that of the Scottish Labour Party, that the tolls should be removed from the Forth Road Bridge.

“The biggest stumbling block to this has always been the Liberal Democrat transport minister so I hope he now listens to his party members in Dunfermline and does the right thing.”