Motorists in Greater Manchester could become the first to trial pay-as-you-go technologies, according to the road pricing plan published today.

The Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA) wants motorists to pay a deposit for an electronic tag in their car, which will be detected by roadside beacons to monitor the vehicle on 15 different routes into the city.

Entering an outer cordon around the M60 ring road will cost £2, with people charged an extra £1 to get into the city centre, says the plan. But drivers that use the road outside peak times will not be charged.

Manchester is one of the 10 authorities in England that have received government funding to develop road pricing plans to ease congestion. The city wants a further £1bn from the Transport Innovation Fund to launch the scheme, which could be up and running by 2012.