UTILITY companies digging up roads are to be charged a daily rate in a bid to speed them up.

From today, companies will have to pay Middlesbrough Council up to £300 a day while they are carrying out work on roads in the town.

The "lane rental" scheme, one of only two being piloted in the country on behalf of the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, is aimed at cutting traffic congestion and making public transport more reliable by ensuring utility companies work at maximum speed and efficiency.

The council also hopes it will encourage utilities to look for less disruptive alternatives to digging up roads.

Companies will be charged £300 a day for work on bus routes and £50 for work on all other routes.

The only exceptions will be emergency work when the rate will go down to £100.

But, if companies cut corners on major routes and have to return to a site to redo work, they will be penalised and charged £500 a day.

The council's deputy leader, Councillor Sylvia Connolly, said: "This is a radical approach, but one which we hope will benefit all road users and in particular make public transport more attractive and reliable by tackling one of the main causes of congestion. The object of this exercise is not to make money but to beat congestion.

"Where a utility company can come up with a creative solution, which means they don't have to do any digging, we will be willing to waive or vary the charges."