Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber says that the muddle surrounding the different approaches, which include road charging in Derby and a workplace parking levy in Nottingham, can only be damaging to the business prospects of the area.

Chief executive George Cowcher said: "With the 6Cs study we had a unified approach between the city councils and county councils, which made sense because the problem of congestion stretches beyond the boundaries of any one authority.

"What we have now is a sorry state of affairs – a complete mess, with disagreement between and within some authorities, and confusion within the business community."

Among the Chamber's membership, congestion charging is seen as a lesser evil than the parking levy.

The latter is being pursued in Nottingham but according to the 6Cs Congestion Management Study report it would have a relatively low direct impact on congestion and would only raise £24m between the three cities for an investment package of alternatives to car travel.

The Chamber says some companies are considering moving should a tax on workplace parking be introduced.

And it points out the report states that 'further detailed consideration' would be needed to assess the wider economic impacts of congestion charging.

Mr Cowcher said: "We are extremely disappointed with this situation, which is confusing to business and the public alike. We need clarity, and we need our politicians to work together on this.

"We would argue that there are alternative solutions such as targeted improvements for particular congestion hotspots which appear not to have been considered by some.

"While we agree that investment in our transport infrastructure is vital, there are other ways of raising this revenue that would be more accountable and less damaging to business."