Vol. 566 No. 3
423 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will review the safety procedures for road openings and the erection and removal of telegraph poles in view of the traffic hazard which the location of such facilities can cause; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12741/03]
The Communications Regulation Act 2002 sets out, inter alia, provisions that strengthen the powers vested in local authorities to control in the public interest road works undertaken by telecommunications operators. A review on the effectiveness of statutory road-opening controls is being carried out by my colleague, the Minister for Transport. As part of the review, city and county managers have been asked for their comments in relation to the 2002 Act and other road-opening provisions. Depending on the outcome of the review, consideration will be given as to whether further strengthening of legislation to deal with road openings undertaken by statutory undertakers generally – i.e. in the telecommunications area and also bodies such as ESB and Bord Gáis – is required.
Section 254 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended by section 54 of the Communications Regulation Act 2002, provides that a licence is required from the relevant local authority for the erection of overground electronic communications infrastructure, including telegraph poles, along a public road. As the legislation has been so recently revised, I have no proposals for a further review at this stage.
