Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 27 Mar 1990

Vol. 397 No. 5

Written Answers. - Road Grants.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

128 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment the total amount of funds allocated to each local authority in 1990 in respect of main and country roads; if he will equate same with (a) the population in the local authority area and (b) the average volume of vehicular traffic per mile of road as determined by traffic counts in each local authority area; the counties or local authority areas which have (a) the lowest/highest level of allocation per head of population and (b) the lowest/highest level of allocation per mile of road; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for the Environment (Mr. Flynn)

Following are details of the amounts of road grants allocated to each county council for regional and county roads in 1990 together with the population of the County in 1986:

Amounts of Road Grants Allocated and Population

	Road Grants Allocated 1990 (£'000)	Population
1	2	3	4	5	6
Block Grants	Supplementary Block Grant for Improvements	Forest Access Roads	Flood Relief	Special Grants	Total
Carlow	735	—	—	—	20	755	40,986
Cavan	1,900	500	—	—	55	2,455	53,965
Clare	2,577	400	65	—	30	3,072	91,344
Cork	7,676	—	—	418	140	8,234	279,464
Donegal	4,132	—	95	51	145	4,423	129,664
Dublin	1,315	—	—	—	1,030	2,345	518,700
Galway	4,097	500	—	114	364	5,075	131,448
Kerry	2,823	200	25	—	403	3,451	124,159
Kildare	1.301	700	—	—	410	2,411	116,247
Kilkenny	1,867	—	—	—	20	1,887	73,186
Laois	1,421	250	—	—	150	1,821	53,284
Leitrim	1,471	300	65	44	155	2,035	27,035
Limerick	2,200	—	40	—	20	2,260	108,290
Longford	992	300	—	—	—	1,292	31,496
Louth	739	300	—	44	50	1,133	911,810
Mayo	3,621	—	140	222	250	4,233	115,184
Meath	1,973	300	—	—	38	2,311	103,881
Monaghan	1,570	300	—	—	20	1,890	52,379
Offaly	1,188	250	—	—	640	2,078	59,835
Roscommon	2,485	200	70	—	120	2,875	54,592
Sligo	1,636	—	—	—	100	1,736	56,046
Tipperary NR	1,743	—	—	—	—	1,743	59,522
Tipperary SR	1,832	—	—	—	—	1,832	77,097
Waterford	1,648	—	—	65	30	1,743	51,622
Westmeath	1,345	—	—	—	20	1,365	63,379
Wexford	2,081	—	—	22	40	2,143	102,552
Wicklow	1,282	—	—	—	750	2,032	94,542

The block grants at column 1 above, apart from those for Dublin County Council, were allocated strictly in proportion to the mileage of regional and county roads in each county. They are, on average, 37 per cent higher than the equivalent grants notified in 1989. In the case of Dublin County Council, the total grant, while higher than would be appropriate on a road mileage basis, represents an increase of 3 per cent compared with 1989.

The other categories of grants were allocated on the basis of needs identified in relation to the improvement of the roads in question. I am satisfied that all county councils have received their fair share of the funds available to me for regional and county roads in 1990.

A traffic counting programme operated by the environmental research unit of my Department provides an estimate of total vehicle miles of travel on all regional and county roads in the State on the basis of a sampling system. The system was not designed to provide an estimate of the proportion of this travel undertaken in each local authority area. Accordingly, reliable figures of the average volume of vehicular traffic per mile of regional and county road per local authority area are not available.