JFK is always good for the odd headline - as anybody in the conspiracy theory business will agree. When you mention "JFK" and "1963" together in Ireland, however, any grassy knolls coming up will have definite Irish locations. And there will be no Oswald in sight. You see: 1963 was the year the first Catholic US president became the first US president to visit Ireland. A visit only topped in popularity by John Paul II jetting in decades later.

Now the Galway City Museum has revisited the Kennedy visit. To mark the 45th anniversary and maybe to attract the odd US tourist trying to escape the (up to now) dismal Irish summer. Because making a pilgrimage to Galway will only be worthwhile for the obsessive JFK-fan.

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Let me tell you a non-Irish story: I recently had the opportunity to visit Karlovy Vari, a fabulous spa town nestled among wooded hills. Famed for its smelly waters and sweet wafers. But as I drove into the Czech Republic from Saxony, I was in for a bit of confusion. After coming off the mountain pass we hit a new, four-lane road. And saw a sign informing us that in order to use motorways ... we had to have a special tag.

Great! Unfortunately there was no indication whether we actually were on a motorway or where we could buy this tag. So we simply kept fingers crossed and wondering how to explain our tag-less status to any police cars passing ...

By now you might be wondering where the relevance to this website and Ireland comes in. Or is the author just showing off? Modesty being my middle name I’d never do that - but our confused predicament on the Czech roads might soon be replicated by hundreds of tourists in Ireland. When the Westlink switches to "barrier-free tolling".

A notorious Dublin bottleneck will disappear, namely the toll booths on the M50 ringroad. Beloved not only by commuters, but also by all those heading from Dublin Airport to the West, Southwest or South. But with the booths gone you still will not be excused from paying the toll. This will be done by electronic tagging, by direct debit or the internet.

Confused? Don't worry, I’ve tried to explain it all in plain English. Hop over to my explanation of barrier-free tolling on Dublin's M50. It might save you a bundle of Euros. And cramp from crossed fingers, hoping nobody will notice ... they will anyway.