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Greater Manchester is to push ahead with controversial plans to introduce a city centre congestion charge.
Eight of the area's 10 council's voted to make a bid for £3bn from the government's Transport Innovation Fund (TIF), which is only available if traffic management measures are introduced.
Conservative-controlled Trafford and Lib-Dem Stockport voted against and several opinion polls have found the public is against congestion charging.
In return for the funding, ministers are demanding 31 public transport improvements which would put more than 200 extra buses on the region's roads, complete the tram system, including a line to Manchester international airport, and add extra carriages to crowded trains.
The charge of £5 a day for drivers to enter Manchester city centre would only be introduced once all public transport improvements were complete - likely to be autumn 2012 at the earliest.
Sir Richard Leese, deputy leader of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), said: "The overwhelming majority of businesses see rising congestion as one of the biggest threats to our future prosperity.
"If we don't tackle rising congestion, our growth path will be affected: business costs will continue to rise, labour markets will shrink and some 30,000 jobs will be lost to the area."
But opponents of the scheme have doubts about whether it is the correct route to take:
· The Road Haulage Association wants lorries to be excluded. "The tax would be difficult for many hauliers to recover from customers and load them with more red tape," a spokesman said.
· Matt Hardman, the campaigns manager of the Forum of Private Business, said: "Higher costs could have many consequences. They will make businesses uncompetitive with other regions and result in unhappy customers. Cost-cutting exercises such as redundancies or relocation will be considered."
· Angie Robinson, chief executive of Greater Manchester Chamber, said: "Our members have raised a number of concerns, such as how commercial vehicles will be affected by the congestion charge, and these have still to be addressed."
· Susan Williams, the leader of Trafford council, said: "There are a significant number of people in Trafford who would pay congestion charging costs but who would not necessarily benefit from public transport improvements. Trafford's residents will be the hardest hit by these proposals."
· Dave Goddard, the leader of Stockport council, said: "There was overwhelming opposition to congestion charging expressed by the people of Stockport, even if there were to be more investment in public transport."
The Greater Manchester scheme is believed to be the world's biggest charging zone - 12 times bigger than London's original congestion charge area.
There have been mutterings that the scheme amounts to blackmail but the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority, made up of councillors from the 10 Greater Manchester authorities, decided to go along with the bid.
The money will comprise a £1.2bn grant and £1.8bn borrowed against tolls that drivers will pay over a 30-year period.
Cambridgeshire has already submitted a bid to the TIF and West Midlands is considering a bid.
At a glance
· The proposed Manchester congestion charge is based on two rings, one roughly following the M60 and the other closer to the city centre.
· The scheme would operate Monday to Friday from 7am to 9.30am for journeys into the city and from 4pm to 6.30pm for journeys out of the city.
· Drivers would pay £2 to cross the outer ring and £1 to cross the inner ring in the morning, and £1 to cross each ring on the way home.
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