asked the Minister for the Environment if he is aware that surface dressing on main roads are on a ten year cycle and county roads on a 22 year cycle in County Donegal; and if he will ensure that adequate funding will be provided in the 1987 allocation so as to ensure that the total collapse of a large section of the main roads and county roads within the county does not take place.
Written Answers. - County Donegal Roads.
30.
Responsibility for the maintenance, including surface dressing, of non-national main roads and county roads in their administrative area rests with Donegal County Council. In the case of non-national main roads, expenditure on maintenance by the local authority from its own resources may be supplemented by the annual block grant for roads paid by my Department. The manner in which the block grant is spent, including the extent to which it is applied to maintenance of these roads, is largely a matter for the local authority. A block grant of £1.04 million was notified to Donegal County Council in 1986. This represents an increase of 10 per cent relative to 1985.
As regards maintenance of county roads, it has never been the practice to make State grants available for this purpose. Expenditure under this heading continues to be financed by the local authorities from their own resources. However, because of my concern about the county road network, I announced a new scheme of grants in July 1986 for strengthening of county roads. I allocated a total of £5 million to local authorities for that purpose in the current year. £373,000 out of the total of £5 million was allocated to Donegal County Council.
I am not in a position to say what road grants will be allocated to individual local authorities in 1987 pending determination of the overall provision for road grants in the context of the 1987 budget.