MORE than 6.74 million journeys were made across the River Mersey in Halton this summer.

This is the highest number recorded since the Mersey Gateway Bridge was first opened in October 2017, surpassing the previous record of 6.54 million crossings from April to June this year.

More than two million vehicles crossed the bridges each month, with most people opting for automated or digital payment methods.

The newly released quarterly figures from Merseyflow, covering July to September, include journeys made across both the Mersey Gateway Bridge and the Silver Jubilee Bridge.

The data reveals that July was the busiest month on record, with more than 81,000 vehicles using the bridges every weekday.

Of these, more than 86 per cent used the Mersey Gateway Bridge to cross the river.

Mike Bennett, managing director of the Mersey Gateway Crossings Board, said: "We have a busy period coming up for renewals for Local User Discount Scheme plan holders in Halton.

"Although we've had a fantastic response from residents signing up to the auto-renew scheme, we would like to encourage any eligible residents due to renew their LUDS plan to visit the Merseyflow website and switch to auto-renew today."

Most motorists chose to register with Merseyflow and use the auto top-up system, resulting in more than 93 per cent of customers using digital or automated payment methods.

Penalty charge notices (PCNs) remain consistent as a percentage of overall journeys, with more than 97.4 per cent of people paying on time.

Neil Conway, chief executive of Merseyflow, said: "We've just passed the seventh anniversary of the opening of the Mersey Gateway Bridge, and customers are continuing to take advantage of our pre-pay plans with auto top-up making it quicker and easier for them to pay for their crossings on time."

He added: "We're urging any qualifying Halton residents who haven't yet done so to opt-in for auto-renewal and Direct Debit payments by visiting our website at www.merseyflow.co.uk and logging into their account."