Eamon Ryan ‘reluctant’ to tackle toll increases if it comes at cost of other priorities

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said he would be “reluctant” to take money from road maintenance and other transport priorities to reduce or defer toll increases.

The Minister told RTÉ Radio 1′s Morning Ireland that private companies would be entitled to compensation if the Government intervened to stop expected increases.

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said on Sunday that he would like to see new prices set to take effect on January 1st reduced or deferred.

Mr Varadkar, who will be Taoiseach when the planned increases come into effect, said he was “not happy” with the change and that he planned to speak to Mr Ryan, who has been “very busy” at Cop27, about the Government’s options.

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Asked about acting to reduce or defer the charges, Mr Ryan told RTÉ: “If we did that we would have to compensate the private companies because they are entitled to it.

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

“If that was the case what I would be very reluctant to do is to take money from what we are spending on which is increasing public transport, increasing road maintenance. So I will sit down and talk to [Mr Varadkar] and look at what other mechanisms there might be.”

The Minister said the Government had already done much to alleviate inflationary pressures on consumers and said that while he anticipated increases, he was not aware of timing.

He also claimed that the operators have a right to price rises linked to inflation.

[ How the new M50 toll hikes will work ]

“These are contracts under law,” he said. “Most of the tolling operators are independent. There are not owned or directed by the Government. They have the right to see an index-linking, which is what this is.”