TRAFFORD Centre visitors can't miss the massive posters featuring giant sharks and the warning that congestion charging will take a huge bite out of their wallets.

What isn't so clear are the people who want you to vote No at the referendum.

There are two groups campaigning against the charge and they're not the kind of individuals who would normally swim together.

One is the Greater Manchester Momentum Group, representing the views of 250 companies large and small, including the Trafford Centre's owners, Peel Holdings.

Then there's Manchester Against Road Tolls, led by Sean Corker, a guitar teacher from Urmston, who started his "people power" campaign after reading about congestion charging in the M.E.N.

The Momentum Group's steering committee comprises representatives from 10 businesses and trade bodies, including Peel, Hydes brewery, Kellogg's, Makro and the Federation of Small Businesses.

They want a thorough investigation of alternative schemes and say that businesses and employees would pay dearly for the Transport Innovation Fund.

Their budget is undisclosed but members are asked to make a donation in line with a percentage of the expense that would be incurred if congestion charging was introduced.

They also give up their time to lobby in their particular sphere of influence.

Communique, a public relations consultancy based off King Street, Manchester, is working for the Momentum Group and was originally hired during their campaign for a referendum.

Rachel Wood, who joined Communique from First Choice Holidays, won't reveal the thrust of the Momentum Group's forthcoming advertising push, but says that there will be one.

She justifies the Momentum Group's use of a menacing shark figure in campaigning.

"The idea is that congestion charging will take a bite out of your wages," she says. "The shark is a bit of fun."

Kellogg's made headlines when it emerged that employees were being urged to "cut and paste" comments from the stopthecharge.co.uk website into personal emails to the public consultation.

Wood says that Kellogg's employees have genuine concerns.

"These are big companies managing long term reputations," she adds.

"The group came together primarily due to concerns that the scheme proposed for Greater Manchester to secure TIF funding offered very poor value for money.

"Founder members were very concerned about the cost of the charge to employees.

"Due to the charging zone's size and focus on travel into and out of the city centre, the group still very firmly believes public transport will not be a practical, door-to-door alternative for many of the 440,000 people working inside the inner M60 area.

"To date, GMMG has met with more than 50 councillors, MPs and their advisors of all parties and views as well as talking to other businesses and customers. Above all, it has repeatedly sought to talk to the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities about the scheme and its impacts, but remains disappointed by the lack of response and willingness to get involved in any meaningful debate.

"The future campaign will also urge everyone to read all the information available and, above all, vote in December. It will focus solely on concerns about the bid not personalities or individual organisations."

The Federation of Small Businesses' Paul Henly denies suggestions that the Momentum Group has been dominated by Peel Holdings.

"In fact, it's been the other way around," he says. "We represent 6,000 businesses in and around Manchester and as many as 20,000 in the north west who will be affected by this.

Real consultation

"We have to stop this particular proposal in its tracks. A No vote at the referendum is the beginning of the story, not the end. We see that point as the start of the real consultation, not AGMA speaking only to people they know will say yes to congestion charging."

The No campaign has recently won the backing of a cross-party coalition of north west MPs, including Labour's Graham Stringer and Conservative Graham Brady, who describe the scheme as "insane".

Sean Corker has been leading the Manchester Against Road Tolls campaign since February last year.

Staffed by volunteers and supported financially by motorists' lobby group, the Association of British Drivers, MART's campaign has attracted more than 17,000 signatures against the road charge.

Corker, 39, MART's co-ordinator, says: "Although it might sound a little presumptuous to say so, MART's role is to be the voice of ordinary people."

He was refused permission for a MART stall at GMPTE's public consultation roadshows and calls for clarity about the source of the Yes campaign's fighting fund, as well as its scale.

He agrees that alternatives to the TIF scheme have not been fully explored and believes statistics used by AGMA to justify road charging were skewed in its favour.

The crux of MART's opposition is the financial burden that congestion charging would place on those motorists who can least afford it.

"Nor will this be the end of road charging," Corker adds. "The government is clear that TIF is about trialling a national road pricing scheme.

"Much is being made here of the fact that only one in 10 will pay on certain days, but how can we be sure that the TIF scheme here will not lead to further road pricing schemes. The TIF bid is only the beginning. It sets the scene for further charging here and elsewhere."

Manchester Against Road Tolls: manchesterrtolltax.com; Greater Manchester Momentum Group: stopthecharge.co.uk

Click here to read the story so far.

Click here to read TIF documents released under the Freedom of Information Act.

Click here to read David Ottewell's politics blog.