Vol. 520 No. 3
95 Mr. Lawlor asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government his views on the recent submission by the Automobile Association which promotes a shadow tolls model for primary roads over the direct tolls model on the grounds that, at high levels of toll, the economic disbenefits caused by traffic diversion substantially exceed the toll revenues. [15689/00]
The national development plan states the Government's commitment to the appropriate use of public private partnerships as a means of providing for major infrastructural services in the years ahead; the plan also identifies national road improvements as a key area for PPP development. The NDP moreover provides that appropriate PPP funding structures will be examined and identified, including where appropriate road user tolls.
Within this framework, the National Roads Authority have made it clear that they envisage the application of road user tolls to suitable projects within their programme. NRA have already made toll schemes in relation to the Dublin Port Tunnel and M50 Westlink (with the latter still subject to final approval).
User tolls are now in widespread use throughout the developed and developing world and are particularly favoured where rapid expansion in major road networks is required. They are a considerably more prevalent instrument of roads financing than shadow tolls and more readily permit the transfer of economic risk which is desirable in PPP projects.
While use of shadow tolls has not been ruled out, road user tolling is, on the basis of the above considerations, more likely to be relied upon in the earlier stages of national roads PPP development.
