In their 2023 annual statement, Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) reported shutting down over 70 fraudulent eFlow websites. Throughout the first half of that year, eFlow clients were the victims of false SMS phishing attacks. The scams would involve unsuspecting individuals receiving deceitful messages that appeared to be sent by toll operator eFlow, demanding payment.
The Bank of Ireland’s fraud division provided crucial assistance in identifying and terminating these bogus eFlow sites. Around two million national and international drivers pass through the M50 and Dublin Tunnel toll roads each year. The annual toll revenue for 2023 escalated by 11 per cent to €190 million, facilitated by increased road usage and an inflation-triggered hike in toll fees initiated in July.
There was a 5 per cent increase from the previous year in terms of M50 eFlow toll passages, with approximately 57 million recorded. The total toll income from the Dublin Port Tunnel for 2023 stood at €27 million, attributed to 6.3 million passages, marking a 21 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
The report also offered news regarding the MetroLink project – the anticipated rail link stretching from central Dublin to the airport and onwards to Malahide in the county’s north area. This substantial public transport investment is viewed as a transformative infrastructure development.
TII highlighted that once MetroLink starts its service, trains are set to run every three minutes during busy hours, with the potential of operating every 90/100 seconds by 2060 if necessary, and the capacity to ferry 20,000 passengers per hour in each direction.
The MetroLink project has received numerous submissions via the Railway Order Statutory Public Consultation, all of which were covered in verbal discussions in 2023. Additionally, Luas passenger numbers returned to their pre-pandemic levels last year with an impressive 48.2 million journeys noted, and a rapid and effective response following damage caused by riots in Dublin in November.
The staff at TII and the operator of Luas, Transdev, reacted promptly and diligently to mend the harm inflicted on the Luas system by protesters on 23rd November. They were able to restore the service on the subsequent day, as stated.