eFlow is the tolling brand name of Ireland's M50 motorway

open road tolling Open road tolling (ORT), also called all-electronic tolling, cashless tolling, or free-flow tolling, is the collection of tolls on toll roads without the use of tollbooths. An electronic toll collection system is usually used instead. The major ...

operation. It is managed by Irish company Turas Mobility Services (a subsidiary of a French global organization called VINCI Concessions) on behalf of Transport Infrastructure Ireland. The tolling station is located on the M50 on the north side of the

West-Link The West-Link () is a set of twin bridges over the River Liffey in Dublin. A toll bridge, the West Link forms the central section of the Western Parkway route of the M50 ring road motorway. History Plans were announced for the construction o ...

bridge. Like other eToll systems, eFlow allows cashless payment on all of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

's toll roads. eFlow uses overhead cameras on the M50 and detectors to read electronic tags or number plates on vehicles. In 2007 the

National Roads Authority The National Roads Authority (NRA) () is a state body in Ireland, responsible for the national road network. The NRA was established as part of the Roads Act 1993 and commenced operations on 23 December 1993 in accordance with S.I. 407 of 1993 ...

awarded the contract to construct and operate the new tolling system for the M50 to Sanef ITS Operations Ireland, a French consortium of toll operator SANEF and tolling system designer CS. Both companies have worked on similar electronic tolling systems in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. eFlow tags are "interoperable", allowing motorists to use them on other eToll plazas on Ireland's road network. Electronic tags from other providers - MiniTag, Eazy Pass, eTrip, Eirtag, PassDirect and Tolltag - can also be used on the M50. With the introduction of the electronic system, the existing toll barriers began to be dismantled in September 2008, and drivers now pass through the toll point at normal driving speed. Bottlenecks at the old toll barriers often caused long tailbacks, which were often featured in the roadwatch traffic reports of AA Ireland.

Charges

M50 toll charges as of January 2024 eFlow tag registered vehicles pay a monthly account fee of €1.23.

Forms of payment

Payment can be made by cash, credit card, or debit card, either in stores or on the eFlow website. Toll charges must be paid by 8pm the following day of the journey or the driver incurs a penalty charge.

Exempt vehicles

The following vehicles are exempt from eFlow toll charges. * Motorcycles * Vehicles modified for disabled use * Fingal County Council vehicles * Army vehicles * Garda and ambulance service vehicles * M50 maintenance vehicles

Controversy

Since the launch of the e-tolling system at the

in 2008, it has faced controversy.Irish Times - M50 tolling system misreads details of 10,000 cars a day - 1 October 2008
/ref>
/ref> In the opening weeks it was reported that up to 20,000 vehicles a day were not being recorded correctly, with some fleet and car-hire operators claiming up to 100 mis-directed fines per day. While the

NRA NRA may refer to: Organizations Asia and Oceania * National Railway Administration, the national railway regulator of China * National Recruitment Agency, Central Recruiting Agency of the Indian Government * New Revolutionary Alternative, an anar ...

initially stated that such issues affected only a small proportion of eToll users,Irish Times - M50 toll problems overstated, says NRA - 2 October 2008
/ref> Sanef ITS Operations Ireland has since acknowledged issues with incorrect toll charges for a "significant minority".

External links

eFlowNational Roads Authority

References

{{Reflist, 35em Road transport in the Republic of Ireland Electronic toll collection Motorways in the Republic of Ireland Roads in County Dublin