A NORTH-EAST town is pioneering a scheme forcing utility companies to pay rent for roads they dig up during maintenance work.

As first revealed by The Northern Echo in March, Middlesbrough has been selected alongside Camden, in London, to test the scheme, which would see the local authorities given the power to make the companies pay up to £300 a day to do any works on the highway.

The scheme hopes to beat traffic jams and congestion and make public transport more reliable, but the utility companies have hit out at the proposals claiming they will be taxed for doing essential work for their customers.

Money raised from the lane rental scheme will be used to finance other anti-congestion measures, such as illegal parking.

The charges will apply to all main roads in the Teesside town and there will be a sliding scale of charges depending on the kind of work the company carries out.

Andrew Panting, spokesman for Northumbrian Water, conceded the utility companies contribute to 50 per cent of road disruptions and said his company was currently carrying out repairs to cast iron water pipes running underneath roads in the Middlesbrough area, which it was legally obliged to carry out.

He added that since April this year, authorities have had the power to fine utilities if they spend longer on repair work than originally agreed.

"That has focused our attention on the amount of time we spend in roads. There is a line below which we can't go."

But he added that work would still be completed in Middlesbrough regardless of the charges.

But Coun Oliver Johnson, Commissioner for the Environment with Middlesbrough Borough Council, welcomed news of the scheme.

"We are delighted that the Government has chosen Middlesbrough to carry out this pilot project.

"Roadworks are one of the main causes of congestion, which is bad for business and bad for the environment. They're also a major cause of delays and disruption for public transport so it's vital we explore new ways of working to address the problem.

"I am sure that the lane rental project will make a significant contribution to making Middlesbrough's road network more efficient - that in turn will improve the environment and boost the vitality of the town centre."