The chaos came ahead of a NSW upper house inquiry into the tunnel. Public hearings begin next week, with former premier Bob Carr, who oversaw the tunnel contract, to be questioned.

“Patronage has collapsed,” he said. “The toll-free period is over and the Cross City Tunnel is back to being a ghost tunnel. Community outrage is centred on thetheft of public roads. The first priority is to reclaim the streets around the tunnel.”

One of the protesters, Jo Holder, from the Darlinghurst Residents Action Group, said drivers regarded it as “absolutely bizarre” that the tunnel had been promoted as being in the public interest. She said the toll-free period had allowed further closure of local roads to funnel motorists into the tunnel.

THE reintroduction of tolls on the controversial 2.1km Cross City Tunnel brought Sydney’s central business district to a virtual standstill yesterday.

The decision to once again charge motorists after a five-week toll-free period saw patronage fall by almost half.

The chaos came ahead of a NSW upper house inquiry into the tunnel. Public hearings begin next week, with former premier Bob Carr, who oversaw the tunnel contract, to be questioned.

High costs and the closure of roads to force people into the tunnel has outraged drivers and led to massive traffic jams.

The NSW Government yesterday voted down a Greens motion for the daily publication of the number of cars using the tunnel.

But the operators released figures showing a 44per cent drop in the number of people using the tunnel following the reintroduction of the $3.56 toll.

The toll-free period cost the company about $4.4million in lost revenue. CrossCity Motorway chief executive Peter Sansom said he was happy with theoutcome, and yesterday’s figures were up 14per cent on the figures in mid-October, before the toll-free period. “We have always believed patronage would grow slowly,” he said.

Roads and Traffic Authority spokesman Ken Boys said yesterday’s peak-hour congestion was not as bad as some had predicted.

But NSW Opposition Leader Peter Debnam described as laughable claims that traffic chaos was not a result of the reintroduction of fees and called on theIemma Government to immediately renegotiate the contract and reopen those streets closed as a result of the tunnel.

“Patronage has collapsed,” he said. “The toll-free period is over and the Cross City Tunnel is back to being a ghost tunnel. Community outrage is centred on thetheft of public roads. The first priority is to reclaim the streets around the tunnel.”

Premier Morris Iemma ruled out altering the tunnel contract, despite the congestion.

About 50 protesters, including local residents and Greens members, demonstrated near the Kings Cross opening, waving banners demanding that public roads be returned to the people.

One of the protesters, Jo Holder, from the Darlinghurst Residents Action Group, said drivers regarded it as “absolutely bizarre” that the tunnel had been promoted as being in the public interest. She said the toll-free period had allowed further closure of local roads to funnel motorists into the tunnel.

“It is devastating for local business, it is bad for residents and it is bad for workers who can’t afford the toll,” she said.

NRMA motoring and services division president Alan Evans said: “We now have traffic congestion in the city at a greater level; you have more frustrated motorists. It is time the Government admitted its mistake.

“I have a simple message: give us back our streets.”

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