Fergus O'Dowd
Question:42 Mr. O’Dowd asked the Minister for Transport the progress to date on the delivery of the inter-urban motorways; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15815/04]
View answerThursday, 27 May 2004
Questions (73, 74, 75)
Written answers
The current position with the upgrading of the five major inter-urban routes to motorway/high quality dual carriageway standard is that the M1 is expected to be fully complete by end 2006. Work is underway on major projects on the N7 — Monasterevin bypass and Limerick southern ring road phase 1, on the N8 — Cashel bypass and on the N4/N6 — Kilcock/Kinnegad. Work is expected to start this year on the Dundalk western bypass and Dundalk to Newry on the M1, on the Fermoy bypass — N8, Waterford city bypass — N9/N25, and Naas road widening — N7. Completion of these projects will eliminate many of the major bottlenecks on these routes.
In addition, it is expected that compulsory purchase orders and environmental impact statements for the remaining projects in planning on these routes will either be approved by, or be before, An Bord Pleanála by end 2004. With regard to the national roads programme overall it should be noted that since 2000 a total of 37 projects, over 250 km, have been completed. Work is in progress on 17 projects, 150 km, and another 17 projects, 160 km, are at tender stage.
Questions Nos. 43 and 44 answered with Question No. 39.
Question No. 45 answered with QuestionNo. 10.
Question No. 46 answered with QuestionNo. 20.
Jan O'Sullivan
Question:47 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Transport if he has plans to introduce new toll routes to fund completion of motorways linking Dublin with Cork, Galway, and the M50 upgrade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15904/04]
View answer
Bernard J. Durkan
Question:98 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Transport if his attention has been drawn to the increased concern amongst the motoring public at recent suggestions of extra tolls to fund roads identified and provided for in the context of the national development plan; if his attention has further been drawn to the increased restrictions and regulations and the high burden of taxation already carried by the motoring public; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15939/04]
View answerI propose to answer Questions Nos. 47 and 98 together.
The national development plan provides for significant private sector investment in the national roads development programme. In line with this policy, a number of major road upgrade projects throughout the country are being implemented by the NRA by means of public private partnerships, with the private sector being remunerated in part by user tolls. This will ensure earlier delivery of vital national road infrastructure. Through PPPs, private sector innovation will be harnessed in the areas of scheme design, construction and long-term operation and maintenance.
The NRA's current PPP programme comprises eight projects. In selecting these PPP projects the NRA had regard to a number of factors, that is, a geographical spread of tolls across the network, the extent of service improvement to be provided by the improved route, the availability of sufficiently high traffic volumes to ensure commercial viability and the setting of tolls at an affordable and acceptable level in order to reduce diversion and gain public acceptance. Having regard to these criteria it is clear that there is limited capacity, over and above the projects already identified by the NRA, across the national road network to support viable tolling arrangements. Nevertheless the increased cost of the national roads programme, combined with the demands of the other sectors which limit the capacity to allocate more Exchequer funding, require that all possibilities for generating additional funding to accelerate the implementation of the national roads programme be considered.
In this context and that of a broader review of the arrangements for the delivery of the programme, the NRA has recently identified a number of options for the development of tolling policy to enable the NRA to raise additional funding for the national roads programme. The proposals submitted by the NRA are currently being considered, in the first instance, in my Department. Any decisions regarding the extension of tolling beyond the current PPP programme would be considered by the Government.