ONE in three Bury households would pay the congestion charge, according to a new survey carried out for NO campaigners.

They say the results directly challenge repeated advertising claims that nine out of ten people won’t pay the charge.

The survey was carried out for the Stop the Charge coalition by independent polling company Populus. It asked 500 Bury residents whether their household expected to regularly pay the charge, and 33 per cent said yes.

Councillor Tim Pickstone, leader of Bury’s Liberal Democrats, urged people to vote No.

“This survey makes it absolutely clear one in three households will be hit by the congestion charge,” he said. “It is common sense that many will pay twice, if more than one person drives at peak times.

“One in ten residents will also pay the full charge of £1,200 a year: that’s eight per cent of average take home pay for people in Greater Manchester. Even paying £3 to cross the outer ring will be £700 a year, equating to five per cent of the average salary: this would require a huge pay rise just to break even. This will also have a knock-on effect for our whole economy, leaving a lot less money in people’s pockets.”

He added: “Liberal Democrats in Bury are committed to improvements to public transport and to tackling environmental damage. But this charge is not a fair way to achieve what needs to be done.”

Tory council leader Bob Bibby has also joined the coalition. He said the current TIF scheme was poor value for money, and did not tackle congestion in Bury.