BURY Council has paid almost £170,000 to foot its share of the congestion charge bill.
More than £2.2 million was spent on holding the public referendum in December and the cost has been split between the 10 Greater Manchester authorities according to their population.
Bury paid £131,079 directly to the Electoral Reform Services for producing, distributing, and counting postal votes.
The council was charged a further £37,771 towards other central costs, such as wages for returning officer Sir Neil McIntosh and his staff and the publicity.
With an electorate of 140,441, the bill is the equivalent of £1.20 for every person. Bury’s share is the smallest of all 10 members of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), with the largest bill —£365,039 — given to Manchester City Council. The overall bill for the failed Transport Innovation Fund bid, which was overwhelmingly rejected by the referendum, is more than £24million.
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