Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I want people to understand that because some people could very easily think the value for money assessments were done on these ten schemes post project. They were not. The assessments were done as a comparison. I refer the committee to pages 12 to 14, inclusive, of the briefing document. The information looks at post-project reviews. Page 12 contains the list I have read out. Page 13 looks at the conclusion of post-project reviews. These are the reviews that have been done which will be published shortly. When the committee sees these reviews, we will talk again. Transport Infrastructure Ireland has included some conclusions in the document forwarded to the committee today. The conclusions cover planning, the implementation of projects, the objectives achieved in helping to reduce traffic volumes and congestion in towns and bypass routes, reduction in the numbers of fatalities, and the contribution to providing the motorway and dual carriageway network routes. When Transport Infrastructure Ireland conducts its post-project reviews, how does it take account of the value of these motorways in the reduction of fatalities? Motorways have done this. Before these towns were bypassed by motorways, we know that people had been killed by vehicles in the towns. It is a fact that the motorways have saved lives. I cannot think of a town that did not have fatalities before the bypasses were constructed. The bypasses also took the juggernauts out of the towns and allowed them to do a bit of local business instead of three miles of juggernauts each way every evening. How does Transport Infrastructure Ireland incorporate this value or does it just do the review on specifics? Does it look at societal benefits over and above cost values? There are other benefits to motorways and does Transport Infrastructure Ireland take this into account?