Collision course

The Government and the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) could be on a collision course in a winter of discontent on a broad range of issues from HGV tolling to the forthcoming carbon energy tax. John Loughran reports.

The NRA didn't consult with hauliers on tolling the Drogheda bypass

The IRHA, the representative body of the Irish road haulage sector, could be ready to take the gloves off and ditch the partnership approach it has adopted since its ‘Day of Action’ in September 2000.
For the past three years the IRHA has been content to take its issues to the so-called Taoiseach’s Task Force on the Road Haulage Industry.

Following Environment Minister Martin Cullen’s decision to introduce a ‘carbon energy tax’ in January 2005 and the National Roads Authority’s tolling of the Drogheda bypass on the M1 a more direct approach may be in the offing from the IRHA.

IRHA communications director Jimmy Quinn told Irish Trucker that the association is becoming increasingly frustrated with the Government and its agencies that make decisions that impact on the haulage industry, without prior consultation.

The tolling of the Drogheda bypass is a case in point. “We haven’t thrown in the towel on the tolling issue, but we are getting very frustrated with the notion that is being peddled that hauliers are looking for something for nothing.”

Quinn, a successful national haulier based in North Louth says the tolls on the Drogheda bypass represent a bridge too far for his company and scores of transport operators in the North East.

Truckers could "down tools" for a week

He elaborated: “In our case we contributed £166,000 to the Exchequer in fuel duty in the past 12 months. When you add in road tax of £20,000, plus the two per cent levy on insurance and the employer’s contribution to PRSI, we contributed more than £210,000 to the Exchequer. So nobody can say we are not making a fair contribution to the Exchequer.”

He added: “If our company was to use the toll bridge exclusively it would cost £22,000 a year. That figure can’t be taken in isolation. We are already £14,000 a year on the East and West-Link toll bridges. High volume users in the North East are avoiding Drogheda like the plague, because they simply cannot afford to pay the toll.”

Quinn believes the National Roads Authority got it badly wrong when it introduced a toll of £3.60 (net of VAT and discount) on the Drogheda bypass. In setting the toll at this rate the NRA forced the hand of the majority of hauliers, who are still using the toll-free alternatives in their droves.

“Most hauliers have estimated that a toll of £2 plus VAT would be revenue neutral, in other words it wouldn’t cost the haulier anything to use the toll. However, the toll is £3.60 net of VAT and discount.

“If the toll was realistically priced hauliers using the N2 would have an incentive to use the M1. It costs hauliers to divert from the N2 onto the M1 in terms of additional mileage. Hauliers could be enticed to divert, thus avoiding Ashbourne, Slane, Collon and Ardee, but that won’t happen as long as the toll remains the same.”

Quinn contends that the National Roads Authority should have structured the tolls to encourage intensive usage. While a 10 per cent discount for HGVs is available, there is no added incentive for high volume usage.

He commented: “Intensive high-volume local users have not been catered for. The 10 per cent discount available on the Drogheda bypass is available for a haulier with one truck or a fleet of 100 trucks, but it doesn’t take into account a hauliers usage.

The IRHA also suggested that users of the M1 corridor and the Drogheda bypass might get some form of rebate on their road tax as an incentive to switch to from the toll-free alternatives.
Once again this suggestion fell on deaf ears: “We suggested that a haulier using the toll road should get a credit against his road tax bill by virtue of the fact that the haulier can’t be on two roads at the same time, but Environment Minister Martin Cullen passed the buck to the Department of Finance where it was kicked into touch.”

All the while the IRHA has been working to encourage debate on who should pay for future infrastructure. During the summer it published a discussion document on the topic and suggested that a two per cent levy of corporate profits could be used to fund the provision of future infrastructure.

“The proposal was rubbished, IBEC are continually calling for the more money for infrastructure, but they don’t want to contribute financially. In fact nobody wants to put their hands in their pockets,” Quinn affirmed.

The IRHA is adamant that its members can’t be expected to fund future infrastructure through roads tolls and warns that many hauliers are already operating on the edge. “The haulage industry is ready to implode. We have evidence that shows hauliers are going out of business at an alarming rate. We have had a terrible two years in terms of energy, insurance and now toll costs. We cannot dig any deeper into our pockets to pay tolls,” he warned.

The proposed introduction of the ‘carbon energy tax’ in January 2005 is another area of grave concern for hauliers, according to Quinn. “All the carbon energy tax is going to do is make the Government richer. There are very few alternatives open to hauliers in terms of fuel. Big companies in the UK are experimenting with Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) but that alternative isn’t available to us in Ireland.”

Quinn contends the introduction of the carbon energy tax will have a negative impact on Irish business because it will increase the cost of distribution. “Countries on the periphery of Europe such as Ireland will lose out. Companies based in the West of Ireland could decide to relocate closer to the market because of increased distribution costs. The boom in Ireland was built on the back of low distribution costs.”

“Three years ago we had a day of action to highlight the spiralling cost of diesel. This time round you could see hauliers downing tools for a week in protest at what is happening in the haulage sector,” Quinn warned.