Vol. 402 No. 6
41 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment if sufficient finance will be made available to Kildare County Council in 1991 to facilitate a comprehensive road repairs programme in respect of main and county roads; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Primary responsibility for the improvement and maintenance of regional and county roads rests with the local authority. The cost of such works normally falls to be financed from local resources supplemented by the discretionary grants provided by my Department. It is not possible to indicate the amount of the road grant allocations to individual local authorities for 1991 pending the determination of the overall road grant provision for next year.
42 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment if he has received plans for road and bridge realignments at Shaw Bridge, Kilcock, County Kildare; if costings have been done in respect of this work; whether he intends to make provision for the implementation of this project in 1991; if the necessary funds are available; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
As Shaw Bridge is located on a regional road, primary responsibility for the proposed project rests with the local authority, Kildare County Council. The cost of such works normally falls to be financed from local resources supplemented by the discretionary grants provided by my Department for such roads. In the case of Kildare County Council, these grants total £2,061,000 in 1990, including a supplementary grant of £700,000 for improvement works because of the special needs of the county. The 1990 allocation compares with an expenditure of £954,000 in 1989. The determination of priorities in the expenditure of these grants is a matter for the local authority.
The local authority's consultants have prepared a preliminary design and a cost estimate of £480,000 for a scheme involving improvements to Shaw Bridge and the immediate approach roads. The authority have requested special road grant assistance for this scheme. I am not in a position to indicate at this stage if such assistance will be provided.
