Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Transport has overall responsibility for policy and Exchequer funding for the national roads programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Acts, and in line with the national development plan, NDP, the planning, design, improvement and upgrading of individual national roads is a matter for TII, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. TII ultimately delivers the national roads programme in line with Project Ireland 2040 and the national planning framework, NPF.

In the new NDP, launched in October 2021, approximately €5.1 billion was earmarked for new national roads projects to 2030. This funding will enable improved regional accessibility across the country, as well as compact growth, which are key national strategic outcomes. The funding will provide for the development of numerous national road projects, including the completion of projects that are already at construction stage and those close to it, as well as the development of a number of others. Exchequer funding under the new NDP will also facilitate continued protection and renewal of our national roads infrastructure, including motorways, in line with Government policy.

The trans-European transport network, TEN-T, is a selection of strategic transport corridors throughout the EU that have been identified to play a key role in the mobility of goods and passengers through the EU. Three sections of the road network in Donegal have been prioritised for improvement and together they form the Donegal TEN-T priority route improvement project. The N15-N13 Ballybofey to Stranorlar bypass section consists of 9.5 km of mainline and 5.2 km of linking roads. Ballybofey and Stranorlar are connected via a multi-span arch bridge carrying the N15 over the River Finn. The N56-N13 Letterkenny to Manorcunningham section applies to the N56 and two legacy sections of the N13 south through the townland of Lurgybrack, serving the Atlantic corridor, and east towards Manorcunningham, serving the main route to Derry, Belfast and Dublin via Northern Ireland. It consists of 6.3 km of mainline and 2.3 km of link roads. The N14 Manorcunningham to Lifford section project begins at the junction between the N13 and N14. The majority of the project is on the N14 which connects Donegal and Letterkenny to Northern Ireland, Belfast and Dublin, through the Border crossing at Lifford in Donegal and Strabane in Tyrone.

A peer review of the design and environmental assessment for all sections was held in September 2022. The project business case is expected to be ready for submission to the Department for approval at gate 1 of the public spending code in quarter 1 of 2023. The planning and implementation of the A5 upgrade project is the responsibility of the authorities in Northern Ireland. As is the case in all such capital projects, the A5 upgrade scheme is subject to a planning assessment and approval process in Northern Ireland. Since 2012 there have been a number of legal challenges, which have led to unavoidable delays to the implementation of the proposed scheme.

In 2017, the Department for Infrastructure decided to proceed with the A5 scheme. However, the decision was challenged and the decision to proceed was quashed by the High Court in November 2018 when the Department announced it would no longer defend the case. Following the conclusion of the legal action, the Department for Infrastructure updated environmental assessments for the project and undertook further public consultations. Despite the delays which have taken place, the public inquiry will be reopened in January 2023.

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