At last! Life has been made a little easier for drivers in Southampton

Life's been made a little easier for drivers heading into Southampton.

You can now use a credit/debit card or phone to make a contactless payment for the Itchen Bridge toll.

New card readers are being installed on all the toll booths this week.

Deputy leader of Southampton City Council, Councillor Jacqui Rayment, said: "I'm pleased that we’ve been able to introduce contactless payment as an option on the Itchen Bridge.

"We’ve been committed to this for some time as a convenient option for people making the crossing.

"We’ve now managed to overcome the challenges with introducing it in this location for the benefit of everyone using the crossing."

Southampton City Council said the bridge continues to have a toll to cover maintenance costs and to manage congestion by encouraging non-local traffic to use alternative routes.

Discounted rates are available for Southampton residents with a SmartCities Card.

The concession is 40p (peak), compared to 80p and 30p (off peak) compared to 70p.

The upgrade to the card readers on the toll booths will mean that a small number of older SmartCities cards will need replacing.