The Government’s decision to formally approve the lifting of Dublin Airport’s passenger cap has been described as an “absolute disgrace” by a local activist.
Plans to scrap the contentious 32 million annual passenger cap at Dublin Airport inched forward on Tuesday with long-awaited Cabinet approval for draft laws to do away with the planning restriction.
The cap has been in place since 2007 over concerns of issues such as traffic congestion. In more recent years, the cap has been breached such as in 2025, when a new record of more than 36 million passengers passed through the airport.
David Walton of the Ballyboughal Community Council said increasing the number of flights coming into Dublin when it was already “saturated,” was “ludicrous”.
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He believed more focus should be placed on prioritising and incentivising people to travel in and out Ireland’s other airports, as Dublin Airport handled more than 80 per cent of all flights in Ireland in 2025.
He said the removal of the passenger cap allowed “unlimited growth without the proper management in place” and was an “absolute disgrace”.
In his village, he knows of 140 homeowners who are “deeply concerned and upset” due to the noise they are experiencing as planes fly overhead.
“People don’t realise it that we’re further from the airport here than Blackrock or Sandymount.”
[ Dublin Airport passenger cap set to be scrappedOpens in new window ]
He described the noise as “intrusive” and explained its impacts on schools, children with neurodivergence and people who work night shifts. “It just follows you everywhere,” said the self-employed business owner.
He believed some people will move out of the area due to this issue.
“We’re collateral damage,” said Walton, aged in his 60s.
“It just is beyond belief of any objective standards that they would continue to increase the number of flights coming out and into Dublin. It just makes no sense, spatially, economically, environmentally.”
“People of north county Dublin are pulling their hair out over this decision because it just doesn’t make any sense,” he said.
Liam O’Gradaigh of the St Margaret’s The Ward Residents Group has lived in the area his whole life, as had his father and his grandfather. “We’ve been living here before the airport ever arrived.”
He explained that the group has no issue with flights being increased, once there was “proper mitigation in place for those who are mostly affected”.
“We understand the value of the airport but what we’re about is the proper sustainability and proper planning of the area.”
Noise from flights over head and near his home is the largest issue that he deals with every day.
He described it as a piercing noise “that just rattles the house”.
“There’s absolutely no way once you’re woken by it ... you’re getting back to sleep. Its well known aircraft noise, the frequency and pitch of it, is the most annoying of all transport noises.”
He described the noise over the last month in particular as “hell”.
He is affected mostly by arrival flights when the winds are easterly.
“For the last month or so, there have been easterly winds and they’re literally flying over our house on arrival, on to the North Runway ... and the noise is just horrendous,” said O’Gradaigh, who works in the technology sector.
O’Gradaigh said currently the North Runway cannot be used between 11pm and 7am, but approval has been sought to use the runway from 6am to 12am.
He said the residents group and others are judicially reviewing this.
“It’s been hell for the last month and there was an eight-hour window, so I couldn’t imagine what it’s like for a six-hour window.”
The residents group has made three main proposals to help residents stay in the area; insulate their homes “to the absolute best ability to protect their health”, make improvements to the buy out scheme for those who want to leave and for part of the site at Thornton Hall to be reserved for people to relocate to.
“We know we can’t stand in the way, but that doesn’t mean we should be walked all over,” he said.
[ DAA weighed cutting business jets at Dublin Airport to comply with passenger capOpens in new window ]
Local Independent Cllr Cathal Boland said the scrapping of the passenger cap did not come as any “great surprise” to him.
He said two big concerns for his constituents were the noise levels and that “rules have been broken” by the DAA, such as with the breaching of the passenger cap.
A spokesman for the DAA, the operator of Dublin and Cork airports, said it welcomed the Government’s commitment to bring forward legislation to remove the passenger cap by the end of 2026.
“This is a vital step to protect Ireland’s connectivity, support tourism and sustain jobs and economic growth across the country.”
It said it has invested more than €23 million on insulating homes and schools.
It also said 41 homes were eligible for the voluntary purchase scheme at 30 per cent above market value, with nine homes already purchased and another 10 currently progressing through the process. More than 200 homes and five schools have received acoustic insulation.
It said its noise and flight tracking team has installed 32 noise monitoring terminals in local communities and neighbouring counties with seven mobile noise monitors deployed to locations nominated by community groups. Its community engagement team conducted 290 home and school visits in 2025, according to the spokesman.
“We also want to reassure our neighbours that all flight operations from Dublin Airport are monitored for compliance closely. We remain committed to open, ongoing engagement with residents to ensure our operations are as considerate and responsible as possible.”
