Aontú took its campaign against the new round of toll increases to Motorway bridges across Dublin
Party members and elected Cllrs braved the freezing elements to fly banners across bridges to protest the latest set of toll hikes which came into effect on New Years Day.
Aontú Councillor for Castleknock Ellen Troy has roundly condemned the decision to hike up the costs saying
“As we languish in the darkest months of the year, there are no bright lights on the horizon for beleaguered motorists who have been hit with yet another round of motorway toll hikes.
Terming the new set of toll hikes “highway robbery—literally, Cllr Troy says
“The M50 is Ireland’s busiest route, with 160,000 commuters daily, most of whom cannot avoid it. This increase is hard going for those already struggling with punitively high living costs.”
“A 10 cent increase will apply to cars with a toll tag or registered account, raising the charge to €2.60 per trip. Buses, coaches, lighter goods vehicles, and heavy goods vehicles will also see similar increases. These changes will place a heavier burden on those who depend on the M50 for daily travel.
“It is particularly unfair to raise tolls in January when families are already feeling the pinch from Christmas”.
Motorists are literally being fleeced
“Tolls and fuel taxes are not uncontrollable expenses; these are direct government decisions.
“This Government may use weasel words to try and wriggle out of any responsibility for these unjust hikes but remember the M50 is a state-owned motorway, fully paid for by the public. The bridges around the M50 were built for 58 Million punts at the time and the private company behind the project recouped its costs within just one year of tolling. The state later bought the bridges for €600 Million in 2007, yet motorists are still paying.
It is shocking that the government continues to extract even more money for the so-called privilege of using it.”
Since 2008 the government has collected an estimated €2.2 Billion in M50 toll revenues
The daily cost for cars without a toll tag can now reach as much as €8 for multiple journeys, a significant expense for commuters who rely on the M50 to get to and from work. “As someone who travels between Castleknock and Sandyford, I know firsthand that avoiding the M50 is not realistic—it saves hours every day. If I had to leave Castleknock to go to Sandyford where I work without using the M50 it would take me hours. Using it takes me twenty minutes, and this is what angers me the most on behalf of the people in my area; the government knows people have to use it, they are sitting ducks for these price increases”.
“In my constituency of Dublin West, Estate Agents use proximity to the M50 as a selling point, which of course it is, but they forget to say if you happen to travel South everyday you can rock up an annual bill of €1,352.
At a time of unprecedented cost-of-living pressures, these new hikes will only deepen the hardship for ordinary commuters, despite government statements to the contrary,”.
These are the people who get up early for heaven’s sake.
“Happy New Year from the Government, how are you. It’s shocking. We are delighted with the response we received from motorists; There was widespread support from them as they know we will stand firm against these unjust and unjustifiable price hikes “
