East Link toll increase to be deferred to 2024

Toll increases planned for next month on Dublin’s Tom Clarke Bridge, formerly the East Link Bridge in the docklands, are to be deferred until 2024.

Dublin city councillors were advised by officials in the council’s transport section to pause a planned 8 per cent increase in tolls on the bridge that had been due on January 1st next.

In late 2021, councillors approved an increase in tolls from €1.40 to €1.90 for a car and €2.10 to €2.90 for a coach or van, with costs for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) ranging from €2.85 to €3.90 for a two-axle lorry, €3.50 to €4.80 for three-axles and €4.25 to €5.80 for four-axles.

[ Who runs Ireland’s road tolls and who gets the money? ]

The bye laws required to implement the change came into force in January 2022, and under their terms an increase of 8 per cent was due to come into effect one year later in on January 1st 2023. However, in a report to councillors, the council’s head of traffic Brendan O’Brien advised that they defer the toll increase until 2024.

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“As the toll bye laws have only been in place since the start of 2022 it is our recommendation to the members that the CPI [Consumer Price Index] increase in the bye laws should apply from the start of 2024 and not the start of 2023,” the report says.

Mr O’Brien’s report follows a fractious fortnight in relation to toll increases nationally, after State transport body Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) signalled toll increases across the country’s motorway network from January, in line with inflation. The Government earlier this week announced the planned increase would be delayed for six months. The decision to defer the rise, which would have applied to the State-owned M50 and the public-private partnership (PPP) motorways, was agreed by the three Coalition leaders on November 28th.

[ Increase in Irish road tolls deferred for six months ]

It is understood it will cost the State €12.5 million to cover lost revenue for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the tollway operators arising from the delay.

The East Link Bridge was constructed under a PPP deal in 1984, but came back into public ownership in 2015, after the 30-year deal expired.

Until then, its income had been split between its Dutch operating company DIF who got (58 per cent), the Dublin Port Company (25 per cent) and the council (17 per cent).

[ The Irish Times view on road toll increases ]

The council now gets 100 per cent of the approximately €4 million annual income generated by tolls.

* This article was edited on December 7th to correct a factual error.