Opposition to plans by the National Roads Authority (NRA) to impose a toll on motorists using a new €100 million tunnel under the River Shannon in Limerick will be presented to an oral hearing on February 1st.
Construction on the €372 million bypass of Limerick is expected to begin next year after the NRA awards the contract to one of the four consortiums which have tendered to build and operate the road.
The successful consortium is expected to generate more than €450 million over a 30-year period. The tunnel is expected to open in 2009. The draft toll scheme published by the NRA says motorists will be charged €1.60 to use the 900-metre tunnel, while drivers of large trucks will face a charge of €5.
The NRA expects 27,125 vehicles to use the tolls daily, rising to 40,650 vehicles a day in 2028.
The tunnel is expected to be one of the largest capital works projects undertaken in the mid-west, linking national routes converging on Limerick from Dublin, Tipperary, Cork, Kerry, Waterford, Ennis and Shannon Airport.
The Irish Road Hauliers Association (IRHA) and the Automobile Association (AA) yesterday expressed their opposition to the toll proposal.
A spokesman for the IRHA said: "The tolls planned for the Limerick tunnel will cancel out any advantage the road may have because of delays." Mr Conor Faughnan, of the AA, said toll schemes were inefficient by causing diversion from new roads on to existing roads because of the tolls charged.
