Hauliers at Dublin Port have threatened a work stoppage which could disrupt the arrival of the international Tall Ships race in Dublin in a fortnight.
The Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) claimed it would organise a series of two-day stoppages, to start on August 24th and 25th when the tall ships are in Dublin.
The association outlined a list of grievances, including traffic congestion, lengthy waiting times for loading and unloading, inconsistencies in processing paperwork, a lack of action in eradicating illegal haulage operators, lack of facilities at the port and tolling charges.
Dublin Port Ltd, the Dublin port authority, said it was disappointed that a stoppage was planned just days before a big international event was to take place.
Mr Joe Jones, the assistant chief executive officer, said the port authority was not involved in the dispute and blocking the port was not going to help traffic congestion.
"We think the port tunnel, which is three years away, is the solution to traffic congestion, not blocking the road." He added that in the meantime people would have to accept that there would be considerable difficulties in traffic congestion. Dublin Port authority leases out areas to terminal operators such as ferry companies and major cargo exporters and the operators provide the facilities for the haulage companies they hire to ferry cargo.
The association claims that Dublin Port has failed to address the decreasing availability of parking spaces for vehicles in Dublin Port.
Mr Jones said, however, that the authority operated a 12-acre site for paid parking and supplied 24-hour-a-day security for the container site.
"We closed it after two years because nobody was using it. People do not want to pay for parking," he said. IBEC, the employers' body, which represents a number of the major terminal operators at the port, said it would be making a statement today on the threatened strike.
