Cambridge punting companies are being put under increasing pressures, as the Cam Conservators hike registration fees due to health and safety fears.

The cost of registering a conventional punt will rise from £403 to £564, and wider ‘ferry’ punts will be subject to an increase from £806 to £1064.

The proliferation of six foot wide ‘ferry punts’ has been particularly controversial, as they have been accused of causing congestion on the River Cam. The use of such punts can generate up to £150 an hour at the height of the tourist season.

The move has caused outrage amongst punt hire companies. In a meeting with conservators, Mr Macnaughton, head of Scudamores argued that, "it would cost Scudamore's £20,000 per year, and the other firms £40,000 in total. It amounts to a 45 per cent increase in one year, whereas other river users are just getting a 3.3 per cent increase.

“I believe that is unfair and the logic behind it is flawed. Where's the consultation? There hasn't been one. These are people's livelihoods we are talking about. It's just wrong, people shouldn't be treated in this way.”

The Granta Boat and Punting Company have expressed concerns as to the effect that it will have on prices, stating that the pressure will be such that “unfortunately we would have to pass the increase in registration costs onto the customer.”

The company also questioned the motives behind the tax hike: “It is clear that the Conservators are increasing prices not to reduce congestion on the rivers, but for an increase in funds. This is shown in the huge price difference between registering a punt in Oxford and registering a punt in Cambridge. In Oxford it costs £30, whereas here it’s over £400.”

This decision comes after what the media dubbed the ‘punt wars’ of last Summer, in which incidents of sabotage were reported between punting groups. This culminated in 22.5 hour a day police patrolling. Indeed, in the last three years thirty one incidents have been reported to the police, ranging from knife threats to cups of tea being thrown from one tout onto another.

Deputy river manager Jonathan Wakefield defended the move as a measure to curtail such incidents, criticising wide punts in particular as a cause of contention. “They are very profitable but cause more bumps and people find it more difficult to get past each other. It leads to frayed tempers and a bit of animosity on the water.

“People who operate the wide-beam punts say they are more stable and safer for passengers but when they are moving they are much more difficult stop in a crisis.”

Cambridge currently has a lucrative punting industry, with 300 registered boats on the river. From their introduction to the Cam a hundred years ago, they have emerged as one of the most popular tourist pastimes.