We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
THERE WILL BE a €13 charge for some motorists going through Dublin’s Port Tunnel from 1 January, 2025.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) announced today that from the new year, tolls on the Dublin Port Tunnel, M50 motorway, and eight national roads will increase.
On 1 January 2024, the charge to use the Port Tunnel during peak hours increased to €12, which was a return to 2009 levels.
Peak southbound hours are 6am to 10am during weekdays, while peak northbound hours are 4pm to 7pm.
All vehicles driving through the tunnel during off-peak hours were subject to a 50 cent increase, rising to €3.50.
While there will be no increase in off-peak prices from 1 January 2025, there will be a one euro increase on southbound journeys during peak hours.
This will see motorists charged €13 for southbound journeys through the Port Tunnel from 1 January.
TII said increased levels of traffic using the Dublin Port Tunnel during the southbound peak hours is behind the price rise.
On the M50, there is no increase for cars that are registered with a tag or video account.
However, there is a 10 cent increase for cars, buses, coaches, and lighter goods vehicles that do not have a tag or video account.
Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) exceeding 10,000kg with tag and video account will have a 10 cent increase, and there will be a 20 cent increase for unregistered HGV’s that do not have a tag or video account.
This means cars without an M50 account will be charged €3.80, while unregistered HGVs will be charged €7.70.
Eight national roads which are operated under a “Public Private Partnership” will also see some increases.
On these eight toll roads (M1, M3, M4, M7/M8 ,M8, N18 Limerick Tunnel, and N25 Waterford) there is a 10 cent increase for buses, coaches and HGVs, except for on the M3 where tolls remain unchanged for HGVs not exceeding 3,500kg.
Meanwhile, on the M4 Kilcock to Kinnegad, heavy goods vehicles exceeding 3,500kg will have a 20 cent increase.
However, for cars on these toll roads there will be no increase, except for on the M4 Kilcock to Kinnegad where there is a 10 cent rise.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Ireland the gift that keeps on taking…..
@Tom Newell: people cannot afford food, heat or clothes and now they put up the cost to travel a road up to 13 euro which people don’t even earn in an hour. Enough is enough.
@Buster Lawless: will keep going up because people are not doing anything about it
@Buster Lawless: Lanzarote jammed with Irish people who cant feed themselves too
@Peter Byrne: smug man peter Byrne,.. but can’t see the wood for the trees.
@Peter Byrne: maybe those folks saved their pennies and euros instead of buying Costa coffees and croissants for ages to go on holiday, or maybe they borrowed from the credit union or a loan shark, not everyone has cash at the drop of a hat, anyway what’s that got to do with the government dipping their hands into our pockets again.
@Paul Gorry: of course not, no trees here!
@Peter Byrne: Awful thing to say about your FG cronies in Lanzorote ….
@Michale Kane: Let’s be honest – FG cronies, or any other cronies for that matter, wouldn’t be seen dead in Lanzarote
@Tom Newell: free Vaseline for every voter!
@Buster Lawless: yes, our salary did not not bump 30 percent up like all prices. we are just screwed because we are employees, soon replaced by cheaper workforce from far away.
Spend hundreds of millions to build the tunnel, and then price it so that it’s completely infeasible to use it. Only in Ireland, you couldn’t make it up.
@Tony Murphy: it’s infeasible if it’s gridlocked with cars commuting. It was built for haulage.
@Tony Murphy: the toll revenue raised over the years would suggest otherwise
@mcleixlip: exactly
@Kevin Kerr: they have raised 39 billion in tolls in only 9 years. Pure greed nothing more.
@Buster Lawless: like the M50 at rush hour… you’re a bit slow
@Tony Murphy: it’s for haulage
@mcleixlip: yeah and most of those like me pay the toll through expenses, no cost to me and company gets to write it off, same for parking charges, frees up roads and spaces for free for us, it’s great.
@Buster Lawless: in your face greed & gouging. S’funny Buster but my stalker is very like my wife, argue with the wind for the direction it’s blowing they would,lol
@Tony Murphy: You haven’t travelled much it seems, it is very common. You have the same type of tunnel in many capital cities like Paris for example where it’s more expensive at peak hours.
@mcleixlip: who needs a circus with clowns like you around??
@Kevvy kerrr: there is 2 of you here? What is this?
@Buster Lawless: its latest craze from the trolls, copycat stalking, loads of genuine posters on here have been ‘cloned’ — it drives some crazy but i just say, let him/her/they at it, I call this one my own private stalker
@mcleixlip: Half of which should be on a track.
@mcleixlip: it’s in gridlock because the government haven’t done anything since the Tunnel opened over a decade ago, no metro, no roads upgrade. Capitals like Brussels, similar size as Dublin has have an underground road network at the city centre, mostly free of charge. Then people wouldn’t have the need to use the Dublin Tunnel.
@sean weir: I disagree Sean. As part of the Dublin City Traffic Management Plan implemented last August, anything outside of public transport vehicles can’t use the Norh keys after 7:00am. People who work in this area need an alternative to the city centre when travelling for work. There is just no joined up thinking when it comes to traffic management in this country.
@DMA: We’re not in London, or anywhere in Germany, Spain, or mainland Europe, our public transport infrastructure is substandard to say the least. It can’t handle the numbers of people quitting their cars for trains, Luases and Buses. How are we going to get there? I didn’t choose to work in the city centre, that’s where the jobs are in my field, then move the businesses out to business parks by the M50 then. Other cities that imposed these restrictions already had viable options, but we don’t
Why is the price increasing?, “Because there’s more traffic”. Doesn’t that mean you’re getting more money?, “Yes, but we want more”. Why?, “Just because… Hangs up”.
@Meh Meh: it was built to facilitate haulage to the port and keep the trucks off the quays, not to facilitate commuters in cars.
@Meh Meh: The state signed up for inflation proofed contracts with the contracted operators. Doesnt do likewise for staff in subcontacted state services.
Immoral discrimination.
@Meh Meh: the price increase is designed to discourage cars from using it
@mcleixlip: If that was the case then cars wouldn’t be allowed use it. But they are. It’s just another money grab. The greed is palpable.
@John Moore: Yup, cupla quid for a few signs: “Cars not allowed”. But that would stop the roll in millions per week. “I know, let’s make it look like we’re preventing cars, but not really”. “Genius”.
@John Moore: of it wasn’t, trucks would pay. Heavy goods vehicles and coaches with more than 35 seats are free
@Kevin Kerr: maybe they should discourage all the civil servants and politicians from using and claiming expenses to pay tolls too.
@Michale Kane: Work on one of the toll booths yourself then so, checking number plates? Crap job. Still big raise on the way.
@Meh Meh: What are you on about ! Why would I leave a good job who pays my travel expenses, including this one. Real difference in the public and private expense claims, at least private have to provide receipts and make claims via proper financial and accounting systems.
@Michale Kane: you were only told to blow the wheels off.
@Meh Meh: *Doors
@Kevin Kerr: So why increase it for the trucks and heavy good vehicles they want using it? Why not keep it the same for them or even lower it?
@Pat Barry: it’s free for hgv’s
@Pat Barry: yes, they decided to multiply what trucks are currently paying by 2. Guess how much trucks have to pay now?
@mcleixlip: Yeah. Cars are allowed into the tunnel though and always have been.
@Michale Kane: are you for real??
@Kevin Kerr: Sorry, Kevin, but it doesn’t actually mention that in the article. All it says concerning the tolls on the port tunnel is as follows:
“All vehicles driving through the tunnel during off-peak hours were subject to a 50 cent increase, rising to €3.50.
While there will be no increase in off-peak prices from 1 January 2025, there will be a one euro increase on southbound journeys during peak hours.”
I don’t use the port tunnel myself as whenever I go to dublin, I have no need to. Peak times or otherwise.
@Kevin Kerr: The problem is, there’s no viable alternative to cars, no fit for purpose public transport, no bypass of Dublin city centre that isn’t jam packed with cars
It’s just not worth working anymore, squeeze squeeze squeeze everyone just to go to work. No one can afford this.
@Buster Lawless: Find other pass times than going thru a tunnel ..
@smatrix mantra: it’s the only route for some but no more as priced out of it.
More charges for higher prices on goods, tax increase when vat added, is there no end, use your vote wisely.
@Peter Jo: how exactly are goods going to be more expensive when trucks go through it for free
@J B: there is no cost to pass on as it’s free for hgv’s
Where is Cabbage Head now?
He should be opposing this increase to try and keep the traffic away from the Northern environs of our capital city!!!
@Ollie Fitzpatrick: Ollie you are severely behind. Your cabbage heads have designed it to do exactly that.
Most countries motivate drivers to stick to the motorways and ring roads. In Dublin they motivate drivers differently – its cheaper to cut through residential areas instead.
@Derick R M: Every motor I have driven on in France has tolls, lots of them.
@Peter Byrne: Are any of them £13?
@Anthony Curran: The average price there per km is 0.02 to 0.60, port tunnel is 4.5 km long so max equivalent charge in France would be 2.70 for that distance, although obviously a tunnel is more costly to put in than a bridge/ road.
@Anthony Curran: do you not understand they want to deter commuters from using the Port tunnel which is for buses and trucks?
Some tolls for normal motorways in France are way more expensive than Ireland and more frequent.
@Pat Barry: Pat, the port tunnel was built for hauliers and hgv’s, and is free for them to use – trade off is that they are not allowed to travel through the city centre. The price for cars is, and always has been, extortionate, for the sole reason of discouraging cars from using it
@Kevin Kerr: €3.50 for it off peak is ok but then you get hit with the East Link charge on top.
@Kevin Kerr: an irish solution…… meanwhile everywhere else is building infrastructure for comutters. you see the disconnect. idealy if there is capacity it should be used.
These tolls roads are the greatest con ever foisted upon Irish people. When the Irish government finally decided to give Irish motorists a few motorways after decades of little or no investment in our roads, little did we realise that we’d have to pay a small fortune to drive on them. The UK have had their motorways since the 60s and 70s and they are still free, here we are gettting fleeced year after year for a relatively average motorway network.
I guess it’s to make us all use the fantastic public transport instead. Ha. Who needs to get home to see the family anyway
@Derick R M: We’re literally trying to pay more tax and they cant facilitate the efficiency of that. There are so many infrastructural solutions, nothing perfect but certainly would make it easier for us to work and live. no chance tho
@Thesaltyurchin: Run in the November election, you seem to have the solutions no one else can see
@Peter Byrne: Not mine, not isolate to one ideology, many here have suggested the same, but we’re still too difficult a people to have ideas in politics and society, maybe in a few generations we’ll understand that we never loose when we invest in ourselves.
The M50 charge is theft. The company who built it should not have been given an open contract by Fianna Fáil. It should have been a set number of years to recoup build costs plus profit. It has been paid off ten fold at this stage!
FFS, they are really taking the mick now. It will only be a matter of time before cars and motorcycles follow suit. What is the justification for this? Hs it how our dear minister for transport is getting that last charge in before he, and the party he USED to lead ( before he was usurped ), are consigned to the history books? They don’t seem to realise that any of these tolls that are on bypasses such as the tunnel are actually cost inefficient when compared to going the long way around, and add only a few minutes to the trip if you plan it right, such as the Limerick tunnel.
@Pat Barry: the truckers should organise a day where they skip the tunnel, head down to Drumcondra, then head for Dublin Port via Richmond Road and East Wall Road. That would be some sight. 50 trucks on Richmond Road, trying to get across the junction at Annesley Bridge.
@Eamonn Hand: Well, if it would be anything like Limerick City in the pre-tunnel days, it would be utter chaos. It often took me an hour to travel the length of the Dock Road alone, back then, and when the tunnel first opened, it was a godsend. But now, with increases in the tolls, and yes, I know cars are not affected at the moment, it would not cost me the price of the liter of petrol to travel through the city, compared to paying the toll for the tunnel and planned right only adds an extra 5 minutes to my trip. Now that said, I will admit the reason it only takes an extra 5 minutes is because most of the traffic does pay the toll and use the tunnel.
Infrastructure for the rich and wealthy
@Uí Braonáin: what about the well off?
Republic of Ireland AKA Treasure Ireland to investors!!
There was me thinking that the government is here to serve us, the citizens.
Ireland has lost control, our Govt only care for maximizing profit & enriching those around them, ordinary working people have more & more price increases placed on them, adding further strain in this cost of living crisis. There is no justification for this increase, the CEO will probably mop up most of the increase in salary & pension entitlements.
“Increased levels of traffic southbound during peak hours are behind the increase” so basically we just want to make more money and rip yous off that little bit more
@ron don: Eh, no, the intention is that people will find the charge expensive and find an alternative route, if people say” it’s only a euro” grand more money for them.
1.80 in 2019 for toll,now 2.30 and to increase to 2.40. Good business to be in. Any business that deals with various government bodies is a good business to be in.
Excellent news. This should slow northsiders from clogging our leafy lanes.
@JP: Are you here all week.
@JP: The leafy lanes of..*checks notes*…. the docklands and north wall? Poor quality trolling – 2/10 at best
Since the tunnel is not capable of routing thousands of Port trucks, due to low height clearance and safety excluded hazardous cargo, it was obviously intended to cater for IFSC and State traffic, as well.
Meanwhile the excluded trucks are diverted north city streets, since they are also banned from Dublin 4. Someone has serious questions to answer.
@William Kelly: Eamons constitutes need room for their eco BMW X5s.
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say