Pádraic McCormack
Question:31 Mr. McCormack asked the Minister for the Environment when he proposes to visit Connemara to inspect the condition of the county roads as promised to a deputation from the area.
Vol. 399 No. 5
31 Mr. McCormack asked the Minister for the Environment when he proposes to visit Connemara to inspect the condition of the county roads as promised to a deputation from the area.
39 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for the Environment when he will implement the commitment given to Cumhacht to visit and inspect the deterioration in the condition of roads in Connemara; if he has made such a visit; and the action he proposes to take as a result of his investigation.
I am taking Questions Nos. 31 and 39 together.
During a visit to Galway last week, I noted the condition of a number of regional and county roads in the Connemara area. In addition, my Department is aware of the condition of these roads generally from the results of assessments and surveys carried out by local authorities and from the ongoing work of the roads inspectorate of the Department.
Responsibility for undertaking any works on the network of non-national roads, including the provision of the necessary finance, is primarily a matter for local authorities. County councils may use the discretionary grants for non-national roads paid by my Department to supplement expenditure from their own resources on regional and county roads. The discretionary block grants, apart from those for Dublin County Council, have been allocated strictly in proportion to the mileage of regional and county roads in each county.