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Local Improvement Scheme Funding

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 November 2015

Thursday, 19 November 2015

Ceisteanna (262)

Pearse Doherty

Ceist:

262. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the cost of restoring funding to local authorities under the local improvement scheme for community involvement schemes for non-local authority roads. [40960/15]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities' own resources supplemented by State road grants.  The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the local authority. The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) provides funding for road and laneways that councils have not taken in charge.  That is, private roads and landways, the maintenance and improvement of these roads is, in the first instance, a matter for the relevant landowner.

The LIS for regional and local roads remains in place but my Department does not provide a separate grant allocation towards this scheme.  Instead local authorities may use a proportion of State grant funding for LIS should they wish to do so.  Where local authorities elect to operate the LIS, applications are made directly to the local authority and my Department does not have details of the individual applications or the costs involved.  The annual outputs provided to my Department by local authorities outline the overall number and cost of LIS schemes funded by local authorities.  The 2014 returns indicate that 93 LIS projects were undertaken at a total cost of €1.35 million with funding of €1.1 million provided by local authorities.

There are no plans at present to revise the current arrangement. I take the view that local authorities are best placed to assess whether funding should be allocated to LIS.

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