Seán Sherlock
Question:339. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Transport if a road safety project is included in estimates for Budget 2022 (details supplied). [51047/21]
View answerTuesday, 19 October 2021
Questions (339)
Written answers
As Minister for Transport I have responsibility for overall policy and securing exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the improvement, upgrading and renewal of individual national roads is a matter for TII in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is also subject to the Public Spending Code Guidelines and the necessary statutory approvals.
The aim of the National Roads aspect of the new NDP is to ensure that the existing National Roads and Motorways networks continue to be protected and renewed, while developing a number of priority new national road infrastructure projects, in line with Programme for Government commitments. A key priority in the NDP, in line with the Department’s investment hierarchy, will be to maintain the quality of the existing national road network, including the circa 1,000km of motorways already developed to connect Ireland’s cities and regions. Investment is required to keep these road assets to a safe and robust level for all road users.
The latest information on the status of the N73 Mallow to Mitchelstown road safety project is available from TII. Noting this, I have referred your query to TII for a direct reply on the current project status. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.