andMr. McQuillan asked the Minister for Local Government the current estimated cost per completed work of a major trunk road development plan, and the employment contribution in such construction.
43.
Written Answers. - Road Development Plans.
42.
andMr. McQuillan asked the Minister for Local Government the number of proposals, if any, for major trunk road building schemes which have been made to him by local authorities, and the estimated total cost of such projects.
44.
andMr. McQuillan asked the Minister for Local Government the number of miles of trunk roads at present requiring to be reconstructed in order to make such roads suitable for modern traffic roads.
The mileage of main roads which require to be improved to comply with the appropriate engineering standards of construction is about 7,950. Work on the improvement of main roads has been going on for many years and is continuing at an increasing pace with the aid of fullcost grants from the Road Fund. At any time there are many such schemes, large or small, in progress all over the country, including schemes on major traffic routes. At the same time many more schemes, some of them extensions of works already approved, other new projects, are before the Department, or the subject of correspondence or consultation with local authorities. The cost of construction works on the major traffic routes varies very widely and depends on a number of factors including the value of property which must be acquired and the standard of construction appropriate. For example, a dual-carriageway may be necessary on a particular route in the vicinity of a city where land and other property is expensive, while a single carriageway may be adequate on a section of the same road in a rural area where acquisition also is much cheaper. Clearly there will be a marked difference between construction costs on the two sections. Considerations such as the nature of the terrain (including the volume of earthworks), the condition of the existing road and the necessity for special works such as bridge works in some cases further complicate matters so that any figure which might be given as the average cost of major trunk road construction would be so subject to qualifications that it would be useless.
It is impossible, therefore, to answer Question No. 43 or the first part of Question No. 42 directly and at the same time with a fair degree of accuracy. If the Deputies would specify any particular area, or better still any particular roads, or sections of road, in which they are interested it should be possible to let them have fuller information on those points.
No statistics are available in the Department to show separately the labour content of major trunk road improvement works. The percentage of total expenditure by county councils on road works represented by the amount paid in wages to road workers is estimated at approximately 46 per cent. The figures do not include the labour content of materials supplied or of works done by contract. The wages content of any road work will vary according to the type of work involved and the location of the work. Observation has shown that in general road improvement works involving widening or realignment such as major road improvement schemes have a higher labour content than works carried out on existing surfaces.