Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the commitment of the Minister to visit and view it. It is important that he does. That is hands on, and I welcome that.

The Minister will see the significant need for what we are talking about, particularly on the east side of Drogheda, to allow port-bound traffic avoid in total the town of Drogheda. We need a new bridge to carry traffic, north and south, and a proper road network - the northern cross route - to link up with the motorway.

The problem is that all of this was built by the then Fianna Fáil Government, which cared nothing for local democracy and which stuck it in Drogheda because that is where it thought it would get away with it. That is a charge which, in my view, is true and accurate.

However, I accept it is there. We need a plan, with the Minister's presence and with the local authorities. We should invite the local authorities, that is, Meath and Louth county councils, to that meeting to talk about the improvements that are needed in the road network locally to make up for the significant deficit there in proper transport infrastructure.

The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport is the key Department for increased funding for roads in Drogheda because if it is not a national primary route, it is the responsibility of the Department. I would like to put a shopping list on the Minister's desk in this regard but I welcome and respect the Minister's commitment.

At the end of the day, it is to let a town breathe, live and grow. The town is growing significantly. Drogheda is the largest town in Ireland. It has no council, has no proper administrative infrastructure and has poor local road structure. I welcome the Minister's intention to visit and I look forward to that shortly.

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