Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

The increase in tolls during the cost-of-living crisis is an absolute disgrace. The Government owns the M50 and the East-Link Bridge, and yet we see the tolls for these increase at a time when people are paying higher prices for cars and fuel and to service their cars. The research Aontú carried out shows the commuter has already paid €1.2 billion for the M50 toll in the past nine years. The commuter has paid for this infrastructure ten times over at this stage. The traffic congestion in our cities and towns is an absolute disgrace and people are now paying extra tolls for the joy of sitting in traffic for three hours. The Tánaiste said it was not the Government's responsibility. I understand that the Tánaiste, when he was Minister for Transport, was behind the development of Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, which is responsible for this through the Minister for Transport. The M50 and the East-Link bridge are the Government's infrastructure. It could scrap those tolls now if it wished.

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