Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being in the Chamber to take this matter. I appreciate his attendance and taking the time from his busy schedule.

The issue in hand is the local improvement scheme which has been raised with me not only by people who live in the area I come from but also by local councillors. The scheme is the method by which people living in rural areas have roads replaced where they are not serviced by council roads. The purpose of the scheme is to provide funding for roads and laneways that councils have not taken in charge, in other words, private roads. It is welcome that the scheme was reopened in the past few years and that people living along private roads and lanes have some recourse to funding assistance, but there are issues with the funding of the scheme. Demand outweighs supply and the pressure on the public roads funding allocated to local authorities means that some councils cannot use their funding for the purpose of distributing funding to local improvement schemes. It is important that we try to find some way to deal with the endless number of people waiting for the primary provision of roads to their dwelling houses. Are there creative ideas in the Department, whereby councils can receive additional funding for these purposes?

The scheme was reopened in the past few years, but that does not mean additional funding has been provided. There is leeway for a council to use a percentage of its budget for work on non-public roads, but having the leeway to do so and it being practical within current budgetary constraints and demands on the public roads budget are two different things. Obviously, public roads should take priority and a number of roads in my county were in dire need of funding, not least for reasons of public safety. However, that means there was no flexibility to provide the funding people living along these roads and lanes needed or deserved under the local improvement scheme. They are not seeking funding for cosmetic reasons and to make roads look better but for genuine reasons in order that they can have access to their homes or small family farms. I know of one man and the lane along which he is living is in such bad condition that, if there is any rainfall, he is blocked in by flooding. He is elderly and cannot meet the cost of repairs himself. Councillors are seeking ring-fenced funding in order that they will not be dependent on having to allocate a certain percentage of funding already needed elsewhere. As I stated, many councillors find they cannot justify taking funding from the existing provision because this money is needed for public roads. They believe members of the community are being pitted against each other. While I agree with a previous statement by the Minister that local authorities, with their community base and local knowledge, are best placed to judge the priority of works on private roads, those that wish to use the local improvement scheme should not be placed in a position of having to use resources that would be otherwise deployed for investment in regional and local public roads. Specific and additional funding should be ring-fenced for works on private roads. If funding was provided by way of an increase in standard roads funding, councillors would prefer to decide in council chambers whether to allocate moneys to the local improvement scheme.

Members of Cavan County Council and Sinn Féin have called on the Government to provide the money needed to fund local improvement schemes. I understand councillors sought a meeting with the Minister to discuss the issue, which was the source of great contention at a recent meeting of the county council.

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Reilly for raising this matter. As Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding for the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual road projects is a matter for the National Roads Authority, NRA, under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007 in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority in accordance with the provisions of section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on these roads are funded from local authorities' own resources supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the local authority.

As a result of the national financial position, Exchequer funding for Ireland's roads has fallen radically. Funding in 2008 was €2.3 billion, while funding this year for national, regional and local roads stands at €728 million. The reality is that available funds do not match the amount of work required. For this reason, the main focus must be on the maintenance and repair of public roads. This will continue to be the position for some years to come.

The local improvement scheme to which the Senator referred provides funding for non-public roads and laneways that have not been taken in charge by a council. However, the maintenance and improvement of these roads is a matter for the relevant landowner. Given the financial position, there is no separate allocation for the local improvement scheme. Instead, local authorities may use up to 15% of their initial discretionary grant towards local improvement schemes should they wish to do so. The local contribution for these schemes is 20% of the total cost of the project.

It is open to local authorities to supplement the percentage of the discretionary grant they can use for the local improvement schemes with their own resources. As I indicated, the purpose of Exchequer grants is to supplement the resources of local authorities. It is also a matter for a local authority to agree and prioritise its work programme for the year.

My Department is gathering statistics from local authorities on the local improvement scheme. Of the 19 local authorities that have responded thus far, only four decided to avail of the local improvement scheme in 2014. I note that Cavan County Council availed of the scheme and completed four local improvement projects in 2014. It is my understanding that the majority of local authorities opt to focus funding on public roads. Local authorities are best placed to judge the priority of works on private roads. In this way, they may decide whether they want to operate the local improvement scheme in their area or would prefer to put their resources into regional and local public roads.

If a separate fund were to be set aside for the local improvement scheme, it would involve making a pro ratareduction to the other road grants headings and imposing the scheme on local authorities that would prefer to prioritise public roads. I do not favour such an approach.