John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

I thank Senator Fergal Browne for his kind words and wish him well during his term as a Senator. He should not despair of Carlow winning an All Ireland final, but be encouraged by the experience of Offaly in winning a few All Ireland titles after a lapse of many years.

The national development plan, NDP, provides for an investment programme of €6.7 billion in the upgrading of the national roads network over the period 2000-06. The detailed programming of the work involved and the planning, design and implementation of individual road projects are matters for the NRA in conjunction with local authorities. Overall, good progress has been made in the implementation of the programme. Over €1 billion, the highest allocation ever and nearly twice the level of funding in 1999, is being provided for the NRA in 2002 for the improvement and maintenance of national roads.

Exchequer investment over the period 2000-02 will be approximately €2.6 billion, more than 12% in excess of that promised under the NDP. This has funded the completion of 15 major schemes, involving approximately 106 km of roadway in 2001, including such major projects as Dunleer-Dundalk, MI; southern cross route, M50; Croom bypass, N20; Kilmacthomas bypass, N25; and Blackpool bypass, N20, to mention just a few. There is ongoing work this year on 20 major projects with a combined length of over 200 km, including work on the M1-N1, Cloghran-Balbriggan and Drogheda bypass; Dublin port tunnel; N4, Celbridge interchange; N7, Kildare bypass; Watergrasshill bypass; Limerick southern ring road; N17, Knock-Claremorris phase two; N18, Newmarket-on-Fergus bypass; N22, Ballincollig bypass; N25, Youghal bypass, and the M50, south eastern motorway.

Good progress is being made in the roll-out of the NRA's PPP programme. Four projects, Kilcock-Kinnegad, the Waterford city bypass, the Dundalk Western bypass and the Fermoy bypass are at tender stage. Good progress has been made in the planning and design of other projects, including the selection of preferred route corridors for the five major inter-urban routes.