Congestion charges now inevitable

A STUDY of the State’s national roads currently underway is likely to recommend where traffic-control mechanisms such as congestion charging can be applied.

The report is being carried out by a consortium headed by international transport and environment consultancy Faber Maunsell, who were awarded the contract by the NRA before Christmas.

Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey said earlier this month that congestion charges were likely to be imposed within the next three years and the report is expected to offer recommendations as to how such a system could be implemented.

The study will concentrate on ways to ensure the upgraded national road network, in particular inter-urban routes and the M50, does not become clogged with traffic. The report is a follow-up to previous research into traffic-demand management, such as the 2007 study of the M50.

One option for congestion charging is the creation of high-priority zones which would impose a charge on private, non-commercial traffic.

Similar to the system used in London, it has the advantage of avoiding the unwanted by-product of rat-runs through housing estates and commercial zones by motorists trying to avoid charges associated with a particular road.

The consultants will also look at other management options, including optimising speed limits and the timing of traffic lights to maximise vehicle flow.

Congestion charges are now considered almost inevitable and the report by Faber Maunsell, Roughan O’Donovan and Goodbody Economics will provide a series of options for their introduction.

One of the first phases of the study was the completion of a national traffic model that allows the NRA and researchers to examine traffic flows for a completed national road network, even though the M50 upgrade and parts of main inter-urban routes remain incomplete.

The NRA has also spoken to similar bodies such as the Highways Agency in the UK and the roads authority in New Zealand, both of which have introduced traffic management systems based on congestion charges.

Research started in January and is expected to be completed by mid-2010. A second contract, to assess the State’s network of secondary roads, has been awarded to consultants RPS.

It will look at weaknesses in the network and budgets required to address them. This report is due for completion early next year.