Road tolls could make up the shortfall in fuel duty revenues caused by the shift toward electric cars

A national system of road tolls costing motorists more than £700 a year should be introduced to make up for a sharp drop in fuel taxes, research suggests.

Ministers have been told to consider new charges, eventually reaching 9p a mile for each vehicle, to counter a looming shortfall due to the shift towards electric cars.

The study by Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimated that nine of the world’s leading economies including the US, China, Germany and the UK, would collectively lose almost £1.4 trillion over the next 22 years because of electric cars and more efficient combustion engines.

Researchers warned that more than £14 billion would be wiped off fuel duty receipts in the UK by 2040 as motorists ditch petrol and diesel cars