Keeping the tolls at the East Link Bridge in Dublin will be debated at a meeting of the City Council next week.

Officials want to maintain the charges when the Council takes over ownership of the bridge next year. However it will be up to elected councillors to make the decision.

Crossing the East Link makes around €4 million annually. The bridge has had a toll scheme on it since April 1981.

The current agreement to operate the toll runs until December 31st 2015.

A City Council report says "it is intended that the entire management and control of and the full proceeds of the Tolls of the Toll road should revert to the Dublin Corporation on expiration of the agreement" .

The report also wants to see a public tendering process undertaken to contract an operator for the bridge from the end of next year.

The Council says the contract is to be on the basis "of the operator running the Toll Bridge for a management fee and Dublin City Council retaining the full Toll income".

Chair of the Transport Committee on Dublin City Council, Andrew Montague says there are good reasons to keep the tolls.