MPs have warned that increased congestion charging is the only solution to Britain's traffic chaos.

In a bleak report, the transport committee warns that the government must "introduce widespread road-user charging" or "accept that congestion will rise".

The report notes that congestion "cannot be tackled simply by investment in more infrastructure".

"Even the substantial increases in funding provided for by the 10 year plan will not be able to reduce congestion and pollution by 2010," the committee warns.

"Nor will an even more ambitious programme of expenditure on infrastructure by itself, as proposed by some of the studies, achieve this."

Members of the transport committee said it was "bizarre" that ministers and officials were attempting to find ways to get the grid locked road network moving without any assessment of the costs of congestion.

"We were disappointed to find that there are still no official estimates of the cost of congestion nor its impact on economic growth," the MPs said.

"It seems bizarre to plan a strategy around the principle of congestion reduction without having a good understanding of its true costs or long-term impacts."

It said ministers should examine and implement schemes similar to London's congestion charge.

"Improvements in technology and public transport alone will not solve our congestion and pollution problems," the committee said.

"The only effective way of achieving a sustained cut in congestion appears to be to introduce some road user charging on our busiest roads during peak periods.

"Introducing inter-urban charging will be a difficult decision to take, and the assumption has been that it would be unpopular.

"But the alternative is increasing congestion and pollution, a proposition which we find unacceptable and potentially more unpopular."

It warns that without wide-area road user charging reductions in congestion are "only possible in the short-term".

"Without it, it appears that the government will not be able to escape the self-defeating cycle of building more roads, encouraging more car use, producing more congestion, leading to more roads," says the committee.

The report also warns that alternatives to travel by car must be provided if road-user charging "is ever to be an acceptable proposition".

"This will require greater levels of funding and significant forward planning," says the committee.

Tom Brake, the Liberal Democrat transport spokesman, claimed ministers had given up.

"This report makes it clear that the government's resolve to tackle congestion has crumbled," he said.

"Its road programme is being bulldozed ahead, while rail and other public transport schemes are left stranded on the hard shoulder."