MOST commuters quizzed by the M.E.N. today said that they would try to avoid the congestion charges.

And every one of them claimed that public transport would need to improve dramatically to cope with the expected influx of former drivers the charges may bring.

Tyrone Forrest, 35, and Elaine Sherlock, 30, who travel into the city by car from Tottington said that the planned fees would `definitely' force drivers off the road.

Tyrone said: "If it's é6 a day then that's a bit ridiculous".

He added: "That's too expensive and the problem is that we can't rely on the trams because they are packed already."

Bill

Town planner Bernadette McQuillan, 23, drives to the city from Chadderton.

She believes that the charges may hit businesses in the pocket as well as drivers. "There are lots of people who have jobs where they are expected to have a car," she said.

"But é30 a week is a lot and in that case maybe the companies they work for would be forced to foot the bill."

She too called for an improvement in public transport and said: "The buses are just not regular enough."

General secretary Judith Sellers, 53, travels by car from Bolton each morning.

She claimed that if the charges cut down the amount of traffic on the road and subsequently her journey time, she would continue to use her car unless there was a vast improvement to the standard of public transport.

"I've taken the train in the past and it is like a cattle truck sometimes," she said.

"And other times they are full and people end up being left at the station."

Rail

Rail passengers were also in agreement with the drivers.

Glenn Molden, 40, from Uppermill, Saddleworth, said: "I've got on the train for almost four years now and nearly every morning there are problems because it isn't big enough."

Karen Worthington, who works at a law firm, travels to the city by train from St Helens.

The 23-year-old said: "It's a good idea but people will not pay it and we're going to need more trains. It's going to have to improve to cope with all the extra passengers the charges will bring."

Crowded

Heavily pregnant Jo Williams, 31, a travel agent, catches the train from her Stockport home. She said: "Lots of the trains are very crowded and in my condition I have to pick and choose which ones I get."

Nick Patel, a 24-year-old solicitor from Bolton, said public transport would need to "match up" to meet the requirements of new passengers, adding: "I get the train and we're nearly always packed into two carriages."

But Jack Schofield, 76, from Saddleworth, thought the planned charges were a good idea.

Christian Lofthouse, 31 and his sister Rebecca, 24, who work for Ofsted, travel to the city by bus from Burnley.

They said the journey takes over two hours and they hoped the charges would lower levels of traffic.

Christian said: "There is only one bus every 20 minutes at the moment, so the numbers will have to increase because people will not pay the charges for using their cars."

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