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Ryanair is calling on the Irish government to lift the 32 million passenger limit at Dublin Airport, saying it is endangering tourism and driving up airfares.

Ryanair, Ireland’s leading airline, has called on the Irish Government to lift the 32 million passenger cap at Dublin Airport, saying it is slowing the growth of Irish tourism and driving up the cost of air travel. Airlines operating out of Dublin Airport were recently informed that no additional slots will be available for flights to the upcoming winter holidays and major sporting events such as rugby internationals and Premier League matches. The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) has now proposed reducing passenger volumes in summer 2025 by up to one million passengers to meet this cap. However, Ryanair warns that this move will damage Irish tourism, put jobs at risk and significantly increase ticket prices for Irish families planning holidays in 2025.

The traffic restriction, introduced in 2007, was originally intended to curb the expected congestion on Dublin’s roads, where 32 million passengers are expected to pass through. However, Ryanair points out that these concerns are outdated as there are now better public transport options, such as bus routes, which have relieved road traffic around the airport. As the road infrastructure is not currently congested, Ryanair claims that the restriction is not only unnecessary but also harmful, and it is time for the government to lift it to encourage tourism growth and economic benefits.

Michael O’Leary of Ryanair said:

“We have been calling on Transport Minister Eamon Ryan for two years to repeal this stupid 2007 traffic cap. Unfortunately he has done nothing and preferred to hide behind the ‘planning process’. This 2007 planning restriction was designed to address the fear that road access to/from the airport would not be sufficient to handle traffic exceeding 32km per year. It is clear that this fear is no longer valid and since road traffic is not an issue, Minister Ryan should instruct the IAA to ignore this 17 year old cap.

The recent opening of a second runway at Dublin Airport has expanded capacity to up to 60 million passengers per year. Despite this significant improvement, the Minister for Transport has not yet moved forward with the removal of the outdated traffic cap that is restricting the airport’s growth. In light of the Minister’s inaction, the whole Government, led by Simon Harris, has now been called upon to urgently remove this restriction and enable the expansion of Irish tourism and employment opportunities by 2025.

Continuing to maintain this cap could have dire consequences. If the current proposals by the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) to maintain the cap are implemented, Dublin-based airlines will not be able to increase their flights during the upcoming Christmas period. Even more worrying is the forecast decline of one million in available seats in summer 2025. Such cuts are expected to severely impact Irish tourism and employment, and lead to a rise in airfares for Irish citizens and their families planning holidays in summer 2025. This situation highlights the urgent need for government action to increase traffic at Dublin Airport and thus keep air travel affordable for the public.

Irish tourism and Irish jobs should not be damaged by a 17-year-old, flawed planning restriction or an incompetent Transport Minister. An effective Transport Minister would remove this cap. Since he will not, we are now calling on the Irish Government as a whole to remove this cap and allow Dublin Airport, Irish airlines and Irish tourism to continue to grow Irish traffic and jobs in winter 2024 and summer 2025.”