6,000 motorists boycott €200m toll road

UP to 6,000 motorists who were expected to use the new Fermoy bypass in Co Cork every day are instead pouring through Watergrasshill, Rathcormac and Fermoy.

The operators of the toll road, Direct Route, have admitted that only 11,000 vehicles are travelling along the €200 million motorway on a daily basis — and not the 17,000 predicted by Transport Minister Martin Cullen at the official opening in October.

Controversy has dogged the toll charges from the start, which vary from €1.60 per journey for cars, and up to €5.30 for heavy trucks.

Already there has been a breakdown in negotiations between Direct Route and the Irish Road Hauliers Association on a possible toll cut for truck-drivers, prompting the IRHA to encourage its members away from the 33km by-pass.

It’s now believed that the amount of cars and heavy goods vehicles passing through the village of Watergrasshill — which itself was by-passed three years ago — has gone up by more than 6,000 a day since the Fermoy route opened less than three months ago.

Hauliers wanted an extra 10% discount on the toll prices on the new M8, in addition to the 10% they can already get for bulk buying 20 journeys in advance from Direct Route.

However, the operating company has refused to countenance any extra cut, leading to a near boycott of the toll booths by truck drivers.

The IRHA last week refused to rule out mounting a blockade at the booths in a bid to highlight their frustration over Direct Route’s stance.

The association also hinted that members may decide to stand as single-issue candidates in this year’s general election.

Residents of Watergrasshill, a village which had been free of heavy traffic since its bypass opened three years ago, are now concerned at the upsurge in HGVs and cars travelling along their roads, with up to 1,100 trucks alone going through each day.