Easytrip welcomes free toll month for HGVs
Motoring solutions specialist easytrip says it is happy to participate in the free tolling initiative for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) during the month of November, if the initiative encourages more hauliers to return to the motorway network instead of using regional roads.
The move comes amid concerns that more hauliers are using local and regional roads – many of which are not designed to carry HGVs – simply to avoid paying tolls on motorways. This is leading to traffic congestion and safety concerns on regional roads, as well as causing structural damage to the smaller roads.
“As a motorist myself, I would certainly prefer to see the big, heavy trucks using motorways instead of regional roads,” said Dermot MacEvilly, CEO of easytrip. “There’s a safety issue, there’s a traffic issue and there’s an environmental issue when you’ve got huge vehicles that can weigh up to 40 tonnes travelling on small roads that are not built to carry them.”
“Look at somewhere like Slane which has the M1 by-pass right beside it, built specifically to take traffic out of the village, yet it has trucks pouring through every day,” said Mr MacEvilly. “If HGVs are avoiding motorways just to avoid paying the toll charges then we need to find ways of encouraging them to return to the national network.”
“Ultimately, we’re in the business of trying to make driving easier for everyone, so we’re happy to take part in this pilot scheme and hopefully in the long term it will bring more HGVs back to the motorway network, where they belong,” he added.
The initiative, which was conceived by Transport Minister Leo Varadkar, will apply to the M1 (Drogheda Bypass); M3 (Clonee-Kells); M6 (Galway-Ballinasloe); N18 (Limerick Tunnel) during the month of November.
Contact the easytrip dedicated Business/Fleet team on 01 861 3215 or email businesscare@easytrip.ie for details on how they can provide the best solution for your business needs.