Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 14 Oct 2003

Vol. 572 No. 3

Written Answers. - Roads Funding.

Eamon Ryan

Question:

94 Mr. Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Transport the actions he intends to take following on the key recommendation contained in the Indecon report on the mid-term evaluation of the economic and social infrastructure operational programme that the Government should revisit the national roads plan and that, in view of the fact that the National Roads Authority has already prioritised investment in the busier east ern half of the country, it may be possible to divert funding planned for sections which have very low projected traffic volumes to other projects that are also critically required. [23140/03]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Brennan)

The recommendation in the report by Indecon Economic Consultants on the mid-term evaluation of the economic and social infrastructure operational programme, that the provision of motorway-high quality dual carriageway standard road type on the lower trafficked sections of the major inter-urban routes be reviewed in the context of measures to reduce the cost of the national roads upgrade programme, will be taken into account in the mid-term evaluation and review of the overall national development plan/ community support framework currently under way.

The views of the National Roads Authority and others will also be taken into account in this context. It should be noted that the Indecon report acknowledges that projected traffic volumes on these routes would justify four lane roads and that a range of other factors need to be taken into account in determining road type and that case by case analysis of the appropriate road type is carried out by the National Roads Authority as part of detailed project planning and design and that all projects are subject to cost/benefit analysis.

Question No. 95 answered with Question No. 74.