The m50 became more than a motorway on Wednesday morning. It became a stop-start ribbon of frustration, where drivers, bus operators and workers trying to reach the city centre found themselves trapped in a protest that had already spread far beyond one road.
By 6am, the first cars into Dublin were meeting a city already slowed by fuel protesters who had extended blockades beyond O’Connell Street, across O’Connell Bridge and onto key junctions along the quays. Gardaí could not say for certain how many roads were blocked, a sign of just how wide the disruption had become.
Why did the m50 and city centre come to a standstill?
The answer lies in a protest over fuel costs that has moved from roads to ports and from rural concerns to urban congestion. Hauliers, farmers and contractors protesting against the cost of fuel continued to cause disruption in the capital and across the country. Some protesters intended to sleep in their vehicles overnight, and the blockade was presented as continuing rather than temporary.
In Galway, the fuel terminal was shut down from 11am the previous day after tractors were parked across the entrance, preventing delivery trucks from refuelling. No fuel left the terminal since that morning, and pumps in Galway were expected to run dry as early as the previous evening. Kevin McPartlan, chief executive of Fuels for Ireland, said the blockade would hit supplies across the region in the coming days.
He said guards were asked to attend but did not arrive for over an hour, which caused frustration among those at the terminal. He also said a number of tractors were parked across the entrance and that the drivers got out and would not identify themselves. Gardaí said they do not comment on ongoing operational matters and said port access is maintained at present.
What are commuters, bus drivers and businesses saying?
For those caught in traffic, the protest felt immediate and personal. Two teens walking by the line of cars in Dublin city centre laughed at the gridlock, but not everyone found humour in the situation. Some buses were stranded for four or five hours. One unnamed bus driver said he took over from a colleague while the bus was still stuck, with the handover taking place on the bridge over the Liffey.
John Young, from Co Louth and owner of Travel Young Bus Hire, said the city had been at a standstill for four or five hours. He said protesters had slept in their vehicles overnight before extending the blockages again after refuelling with coffee on Wednesday. Young said fuel costs were hitting transport businesses hard, noting that the weekly fuel bill for the four buses his company runs had risen by €400 each, or about €1, 600.
Mossy Owley, a haulier from Co Wexford, said uncertainty was growing across the sector. He said he has a mortgage and three children, with another on the way, and added that companies were running at a loss. Trevor Jackson, a construction business owner from Co Wexford, said about 50 people work at his company, TJ Groundworks, and warned that layoffs could follow if the Government does not step in.
What do protesters want, and what response is coming?
John Dallon, a spokesman for the protesters, said the “power is in their hands” to reduce fuel prices, placing responsibility with the Government. He said the blockade was indefinite and asked commuters to bear with the disruption, arguing that fuel prices affect all drivers, not only those in farming, haulage and related industries.
John Young said the main objective is to get the price of diesel down to around €1. 70. He argued that the people most affected are farmers and those running larger vehicles that consume more fuel, but he also said the wider public would benefit if prices fall.
At the same time, the Irish Road Haulage Association and the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association said they were not backing the protests as they continued talks with the Government, while acknowledging frustration among members over rising fuel costs. Micheál Martin condemned protesters who blocked roads and motorways, calling the action unacceptable.
For commuters on the m50, none of that eased the morning crawl. The road that should have carried them through the city instead held them still, and the question left hanging over the traffic was whether the blockade would ease before another day of delays took hold.
