Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 March 2024
193. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Transport his views regarding the rejection of a Section 38 request for a safety improvement project funded under safety improvement works (details supplied); if Kerry County Council and Tralee Municipal District will be considered for future funding after the rejection [12915/24]
View answerIn accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993, each local authority has statutory responsibility for the improvement and maintenance of their regional and local roads. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities' own resources and are supplemented by State Road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is a matter for the local authority.
The Department sought applications in October 2023 for consideration for funding of safety improvement works on regional and local roads to be carried out by local authorities in 2024. The schemes for inclusion in the application are decided by the individual local authorities.
In the 2024 Allocations, Ardfert Junction received an allocation of €110,000 under the Safety Improvement Works programme. Due to a variety of factors, a local authority may have to reprioritise projects and as such may require to redirect funds from selected projects within their allocation.
The relevant local authority must liaise with the Department to determine the redistribution of the allocation and gain approval from the Departmental inspector.
According to our records, Kerry County Council have not contacted the Department in relation to this scheme.
