Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
2168. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the progress made to date on a road (details supplied) in County Donegal since he met with a deputation on this matter recently; his plans to fund the project as part of budget 2018; his further plans to earmark funding for this project in budget 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32861/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra2169. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the progress made to date on the Tír Chonail Street Bridge in Donegal town; if the allocation made in budget 2018 will be spent within the yearly timeframe; the funding he plans to ring-fence for this project in budget 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32862/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra2170. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the progress made to date on the Fintra Bridge project on the R263 in County Donegal since he met with a deputation on this matter recently; his plans to fund this project as part of budget 2018; his further plans to earmark funding this project in budget 2019; the timeframe for the complete delivery of this project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32863/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 2168 to 2170, inclusive, together.
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.
Before the financial crisis, local authorities could apply on a regular basis for grants for Specific (schemes costing less than €5m) and Strategic Improvement Grants (schemes costing more than €5m) for the strengthening, widening or realignment of regional and local roads. However, the extent of the cutbacks in grant funding during the crisis meant this grant scheme had to be curtailed from 2013 because expenditure on maintenance/renewal was falling well short of what was required to adequately maintain the regional and local road network.
The current Capital Plan does provide for the gradual build-up in funding for the road network but it will take some years yet to reach the level required even for the basic maintenance and renewal of the network. For this reason, there continues to be very limited scope for funding new or additional projects under the Specific and Strategic Grant Programmes.
Any projects proposed by local authorities for consideration under these Grant Programmes are assessed by the Department on a case-by-case basis. All projects put forward by local authorities for consideration must comply with the requirements of the Public Spending Code and the Department's Capital Appraisal Framework (CAF) and it is important for local authorities to prioritise projects within their overall area of responsibility with these requirements in mind. To date, Donegal County Council has not submitted a proposal to my Department regarding the R232 Pettigo to Laghey.
My Department is providing grant funding this year for the Tír Chonail bridge and Fintra bridge projects. An allocation of €600,000 has been provided to Donegal County Council in 2018 for Tír Chonail bridge and approval has been granted to Donegal County Council by the Department to award the contract for works on the bridge.
As regards Fintra bridge, an allocation of €150,000 has been provided in 2018 for preparatory work associated with the project, including project appraisal.
As regards the timeframe to deliver the projects, the implementation of individual projects within grant programmes is the responsibility of the relevant local authority. Grant funding for these projects in 2019 will be considered in liaison with Donegal County Council as part of the decision making process for next year's grant allocations.
