A British Man Built the UK's First Private Toll Road in Over 100 Years
Rahul Kalvapalle — August 7, 2014 — Business
References: theguardian & gizmodo
An enterprising British man built a private toll road on his friend's property and begun charging vehicles to drive through it. A landslide in February led to the closure of the A431 highway between Bristol and Bath, adding an extra hour to the commute.
Property owner John Dinham had been generously allowing 4x4 drivers to cut across his field to avoid the 14-mile detour. However, drivers in cars not equipped to drive on fields started cutting through and getting stuck in the mud. This prompted Dinham's friend Mike Watts to take advantage of the situation and turn it into a potentially lucrative business opportunity.
Watts shelled out around $250,000 to build the quarter-mile private toll road. As the toll road project was completely private, Watts didn't have to go through the usual bureaucratic hoops and didn't have to adhere to strict road standards -- this meant the entire project took only three months to complete.
Watts is charging 2 pounds -- about $3.37 -- per vehicle.
Property owner John Dinham had been generously allowing 4x4 drivers to cut across his field to avoid the 14-mile detour. However, drivers in cars not equipped to drive on fields started cutting through and getting stuck in the mud. This prompted Dinham's friend Mike Watts to take advantage of the situation and turn it into a potentially lucrative business opportunity.
Watts shelled out around $250,000 to build the quarter-mile private toll road. As the toll road project was completely private, Watts didn't have to go through the usual bureaucratic hoops and didn't have to adhere to strict road standards -- this meant the entire project took only three months to complete.
Watts is charging 2 pounds -- about $3.37 -- per vehicle.
Trend Themes
1. Private Toll Roads - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Exploring the creation of private toll roads as an alternative and potentially lucrative transportation solution.
2. Bypassing Road Standards - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Investigating the potential for bypassing bureaucratic hoops and strict road standards to streamline road construction projects.
3. Monetizing Unforeseen Circumstances - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Identifying opportunities to monetize unforeseen circumstances, such as road closures, by providing alternative routes or services.
Industry Implications
1. Transportation - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Reimagining transportation systems through private toll roads that offer unique advantages and convenience for commuters.
2. Construction - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Streamlining construction processes by exploring ways to bypass bureaucratic red tape and rigid road standards.
3. Entrepreneurship - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Encouraging entrepreneurs to identify and capitalize on unforeseen circumstances and turn them into profitable business ventures, like private toll road projects.
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