A DRIVER said Durham's toll road system is too draconian after his van was damaged by bollards.

Sean Kenny of Tow Law, said he was unaware that Durham's toll road, situated at the entrance to the Market Place, had become automated.

When he approached the barrier system in his car last week and saw it was unmanned he pulled over thinking the ticket warden had left the post.

Mr Kenny saw another driver go through with a ticket and said, as he did not know where to get one from himself, he followed the car through the toll.

But he did not get far before the moveable bollard rose from the ground, piercing the underside of his Ford Fiesta van and causing nearly £800 worth of damage.

Mr Kenny said: "That thing is there to deliberately maim and mangle. It's using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. The whole thing is deliberately engineered to maim a vehicle for a lousy £2.

"I was told I was the fourth one this had happened to since it had become automated. The last man was Dutch, so he wouldn't even have been able to read the sign. Why can't they use a barrier like normal people?" The toll road system aims to cut congestion in the city by charging motorists to use the narrow road leading to the castle and cathedral.

The bollard allows motorcyclists and cyclists through, who are exempt from the £2 charge, and once drivers have paid the fee the bollards disappear into the ground.

Mr Kenny is trying to claim compensation from Durham County Council, which is responsible for the toll, and refutes the council's response that he was tail-gating the car in front to avoid paying.

Mr Kenny said he would have driven out of the entrance as he has seen other motorists doing if he was deliberately trying to avoid payment.

A spokesman for the council said it would not be paying Mr Kenny any compensation.

He said: "It's all clearly marked now and clearly says it's automated. There's definitely enough signs to warn people."