Road pricing: More new roads could be funded by tolls 22 December 2012 Last updated at 04:15 New road-building schemes could be paid for by tolls which drivers would pay to private companies, a Department for Transport (DfT) study has concluded. The scheme is thought to be one option that could form part of the coalition's refreshed programme for government, expected to be set out in the new year. A recently approved upgrade to the A14 in Cambridgeshire could be the first building project funded by tolls. A spokesman said the DfT was looking at tolling schemes to fund "new capacity." A feasibility study into "private road ownership and financing models" is under way after it was announced by Chancellor George Osborne in this month's Autumn Statement. The report is due early in 2013. Clear commitment The study will explore whether private sector companies could own new roads and how new road building projects could be funded. The spokesman said the government had made a "clear commitment" not to toll parts of the existing road network and that position "has not changed." He added: "We have always said we would look at schemes which would fund significant new capacity through tolling. This would be in very limited circumstances and only where schemes deliver new roads or transform an existing road literally beyond all recognition. More than 20 national road building schemes have been approved by the government, and currently only the A14 improvement scheme is being considered for tolling. BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said road tolling was seen by its supporters "as a more sophisticated way of charging motorists for using the roads than vehicle excise and fuel duty." Our correspondent added: "Tolling can take account of where and when a driver is using certain roads, but road tolls are a very visible charge and likely to prove rather tricky to sell to a largely sceptical electorate." In 2007, about 1.8 million people registered their objection to road-pricing on the Downing Street website.