Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle and all the Deputies for their contributions to the debate on road safety, the maintenance of transport infrastructure and other issues. I thank the Labour Party for tabling the motion. I welcome the opportunity to debate this important topic on behalf of the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Chambers, who addressed the House earlier. In the contributions made by Deputies, as in the motion, we heard about the range of challenges and opportunities, as well as the progress made to date, in creating a safe transport environment for all. We are all in agreement about wanting to provide a safe and secure transport network that serves the needs of all members of society.

In relation to data sharing, as the House is aware, the Government is committed to delivering the road safety strategy this decade, with the goal of halving the number of fatalities and serious injuries on our roads by 2030 and working towards Vision Zero by 2050. The Department of Transport has been working intensively to resolve the GDPR issues around the sharing of collision data through engagement with the RSA, An Garda Síochána, local authorities and the Data Protection Commissioner. While this is a complex area, the Department anticipates that the sharing of data will be resumed later this year. The Minister of State asked me to stress that important safety analysis and funding of safety schemes are ongoing while the data-sharing issue is being resolved. Locations of interest continue to be identified and notified to each local authority, which then applies for low-cost safety schemes towards the end of each year for funding and implementation in the following year. This ensures targeted investment for road safety in areas of the network where it is needed most. In 2023, 55 locations of interest safety schemes were applied for and funded. In 2024, 60 locations of interest safety schemes were applied for and these are being funded and implemented in the current financial year. In addition, the local knowledge of local authorities has been employed to help to identify and select safety projects on our road network. Since 2022, close to 900 low-cost safety schemes have been funded, at a total cost of €31.2 million. Other larger specific safety schemes costing up to €5 million each can also be applied for and funded in each year.

The Road Traffic Act 2024 was introduced in response to the rising trend in road fatalities. The Act addresses three key issues. Drug testing for drivers involved in serious collisions will now be mandatory rather than optional, people who commit multiple penalty point offences on the same occasion will receive multiple points rather than just one set, as is the case at present, and default speed limits will be reduced in line with recommendations of the recent speed limit review. This means that the default limit for roads in built-up areas will reduce from 50 km/h to 30 km/h. For national secondary roads, it will reduce from 100 km/h to 80 km/h. For local roads, it will reduce from 80 km/h to 60 km/h. The Department is working to commence these provisions as soon as possible to help to support our efforts to achieve Vision Zero.

In terms of the regional and local road network, the Government remains strongly committed to the protection and renewal of our road network. Our vast, interconnected road network is essential for connecting people, businesses and communities, so we must continue to protect it. That being said, it is well understood that the road network suffers deterioration over time and that these impacts are felt by communities, especially on the more rural public roads that serve local areas. For this reason, the Department of Transport allocates significant levels of funding for road maintenance and improvement each year. For grant types that focus on road strengthening and improvement, the allocation of funding is based on the length of roads in a local authority area. The objective is to allocate funding to eligible local authorities on as just a basis as possible, keeping protection and renewal of the road network to the fore. The rationale for this approach is that it is objective and, critically, avoids any perverse incentives that might arise if another basis were used. For example, providing higher levels of Exchequer funding where road quality is lower could create a disincentive for local authorities to devote own-resource funding towards achieving a high-quality network. Each local authority is legally responsible for ensuring its network is maintained and improved. This approach also means that, while central government is supplying significant funding, we are acknowledging that local authorities are best placed to make determinations in their own areas for maximum delivery of results.

The Department of Transport, along with local authorities, continues to work towards enhancing the climate resilience of the road network in these challenging and changing climate conditions. Under the relevant roads programmes, the Government is committed to the protection and renewal of the country’s roads, with funding each year being provided to help support important works on the road network. The Department of Transport is currently exploring options across its wider investment programme to determine whether the potential exists to reallocate and direct some additional funding toward the regional and local road network to help to address the worst impacted areas of the network following persistent rainfall this winter.

We know the devastating effect persistent rainfall has on our road network. It is a big strain for local authorities, particularly in counties that have a larger road network and larger areas to cover. Such weather can detrimentally impact the structural integrity of the road network, causing significant damage with pothole development and ultimately pavement failure. Protecting the existing road network is fundamental for road safety and connecting people and places, and we recognise that. With this in mind, and through this significant investment of €658 million in Exchequer funding in 2024, the Government continues to display its commitment to the restoration and maintenance of our important road infrastructure.

When it comes to active travel, the safety of all road users, including pedestrians and cyclists who are our most vulnerable, is of the utmost importance. The reason the Government has invested so heavily in the active travel network in recent years is to provide those who wish to walk and cycle the space and security to do so. With this increase in funding comes the need to increase the capacity to spend it within local authorities, which are ultimately responsible for project delivery overseen by the National Transport Authority, NTA. To this end, the Department of Transport has funded dedicated active travel teams within local authorities, which are specifically tasked with bringing walking and cycling infrastructure projects from concept to construction in partnership with the NTA. Approximately 240 staff are currently employed for this purpose across all 31 local authorities, funded by the Department of Transport, and we have seen the full allocation spend achieved under the active travel programme for the past two years as a result. This is something the general public does not see. People only see the potholes that are filled or whether the roads are in good or bad condition. We know from a structural perspective that there is no point in central government giving money to local authorities if we do not support them to expand and grow their teams for delivery, particularly in the area of active transport. Once funding becomes available for the day-to-day maintenance and upkeep of walking and cycling infrastructure such as sweeping, hedge cutting and sign cleaning, the Department will examine whether additional resources within local authorities are required for this purpose, as suggested by this motion.

I assure the House that the Minister for Transport fully recognises and emphasises the important role that transport infrastructure plays in all our lives and is aware of the concerns that have been raised in relation to road safety throughout the country. The ambitious investment plans in the transport sector over the coming years for cycle lanes, footpaths and road networks, along with the increased implementation of policy and legislation, will go a long way towards helping us reach the Vision Zero objective. This will, in turn, assist in helping to improve the safety of the transport network and, overall, ensuring that lives are not lost. I believe that with the work done in recent years and the ongoing plans and future developments. we will achieve a better, safer transport environment for all of the people of Ireland. On that particular point, both the Cathaoirleach and I are from rural constituencies with large road networks. Some members of the Labour Party who raised this motion also know the vast difference for local authorities with significant rural networks as well as urban networks.

This is a quality-of-life issue for people. If you want your children to cycle to the local sports club or to school and want to encourage that, the road needs to have a decent surface. They need to be safe doing so, not trying to dodge potholes on their bicycle or however they are making their way. In a similar way, when it comes to the speed at which cars travel on those roads, enforcement will always have a key role to play from a road safety perspective. What is incumbent on us in how we fund our local authorities and work through the Department of Transport and beyond is to make sure those roads maintain the high standard of surface we have now become used to. I remember many years ago as a young boy travelling the country with my uncle to see Kildare play in national league games. You always knew when you hit Northern Ireland because when you crossed the Border in the nineties there was a better road surface. That is not the case anymore because our roads have come up to a high standard. We have a high level of expectation and want to continue that. It is not something we ever want to go back on. We recognise this at times of difficult weather. It can be persistent rain or frost after rain that can wreck roads, particularly in rural areas. There is a big challenge for our local authorities. We want to work with them to make sure we have the best surface possible, we keep our roads as safe as possible for users and that, across the range of measures in this motion, we work together to make sure that happens.

I again thank all Members for their input. When the debate concludes I will relay to the Minister of State the points made after he had to leave.

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