Motorists will benefit as tolls on the Severn Bridge were slashed in half, prompting praise from local politicians who pressed for the changes.

Toll charges on the Severn crossings will be halved to £3.30 in 2018, following Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget last week, a move lauded by Monmouth MP David Davies.

The Conservative MP, and his Welsh Tory colleagues, praised the move and said the Chancellor ‘had been listening’ to their concerns, after months of pushing for the deal.

“This is fantastic news for the South Wales economy, and I am absolutely delighted. Halving the tolls is not as much as some were hoping for but it is certainly a welcome step forward.

“I am very glad the government has gone much further than was originally being suggested and my main priority now is to ensure a proper handover plan is in place when the bridges return to public ownership,” he said.

Mr Davies, chairman of the Welsh Affairs Committee, said a cross-party lobbying effort had pushed for the changes over many years, with Labour MP Jessica Morden for Newport East, being a key ally.

The Tory MP said the changes were the foundation step, and more had to be done to ensure the maximum benefit could be realised.

“I will also be concentrating on getting an electronic pre-pay system installed, similar to the one used for the London congestion charge, as reducing the tolls is likely to increase traffic levels and could lead to big queues on the toll plaza.

“This would take time and require government involvement. I am not entirely satisfied that enough has been done yet,” he said.

Councillor Debby Blakebrough, who is running as an independent for Monmouth in this May’s Assembly elections, welcomed the move, saying calls to completely scrap the toll were an ‘unrealistic pie in the sky’.

“The Chancellor has recognised that the tolls are far too high. In last year’s Budget he announced that VAT would be removed from the tolls once the two bridges return to public ownership. Halving the toll is certainly a lot better, although I would like to see it lower still,” she said.

The Severn crossings are due to return to public ownership late next year.