Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to discuss this issue. It is not her direct area of responsibility but I appreciate her addressing it.

The Limerick to Foynes railway line is a 42 km stretch that was opened in 1858 and closed in 2001. Now it is being reopened, which is leading to the expansion and development of the port and which is welcome. I call for extra funding for national, regional and local roads and the provision of sound barriers to protect the estates of Glencairn, Ballycummin, Slugaire and Springfields.

I note the last Commencement matter was about a bypass. When the Government announced it was looking to bypass Adare, it cited quality of life, less noise and air quality. The lives of residents in the estates I mentioned have deteriorated. It is a 2 km stretch behind the four estates. Iarnród Éireann workers came along. There were trees behind residents' garden walls. To put it in perspective, the rail line is outside their back garden and a motorway beyond that. I stood in one person's house. They have triple glazing but the vibrations in the bedroom were unbelievable. The noise level is terrible.

The Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, came to visit the site with me in the past and acknowledged the noise levels. He could see the issues the residents were having. Workers came along one day and cleared the trees at the back wall which left back gardens exposed. Next thing there were people climbing in over their walls off the rail line, which is not open yet but is in the process of being opened.

Fencing has been put up since but there are no sound barriers. Residents' quality of life has deteriorated. They are trying to get sleep but there is noise from the motorway and workers on the line. What will it be like when the train goes back into operation? We have written to the council and to TII. The Minister of State came and saw it at first hand. There is no joined-up thinking and none of them are saying they can work with each other to provide sound barriers. A solution has to be found because it is not right. Residents bought houses in good faith. There was no rail line opened at the time. They knew the motorway was going outside but the trees were keeping down the noise levels. Things have deteriorated and TII, Iarnród Éireann and the council need to come together to provide quality of life for the residents.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Byrne for her question. I welcome the opportunity to discuss this important topic with Members of the House today on behalf of the Minister for Transport. I thank the Senator for articulating so well the unintended consequences of reopening the Limerick to Foynes railway line, which runs at the rear of the houses at the Glencairn and Ballycummin estates. I am delighted to hear that the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, went there with the Senator to understand the issue. This is everyday living for many communities, families and children trying to navigate that particular issue.

I understand that the Senator's question relates to the current funding allocations for the protection and renewal of the national, regional and local road network, with a particular emphasis on the Limerick city and county region, along with a query about the Limerick to Foynes railway line.

The Government is strongly committed to protecting the existing road network. The construction and operation of national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland. Ireland's road network spans over 102,000 km and so requires significant funding to ensure it remains fit for purpose, safe and resilient. This year, €444 million was allocated to national roads projects while an additional €658 million was allocated to regional and local roads. Of this funding, Limerick City and County Council is in receipt of over €37 million for national roads as well as over €38 million to fulfil the council's statutory responsibilities in maintaining its local and regional road network. This €38 million is intended to supplement realistic contributions from local authorities' own resources.

Due to the vast scale of the network, the Department of Transport employs an array of grant types to target investment. Within the budget available, State grant funding is allocated on as fair and equitable a basis as possible to ensure that all local authorities are in receipt of funds to maintain their networks. The allocation of the three biggest Exchequer grant types for regional and local roads is based on the length of road within a local authority’s area, with additional weighting based on contributing traffic factors in specific areas. In this regard, Limerick receives an equitable share of State funding.

Regarding the noise issues along the Limerick to Foynes railway line in the Glencairn and Ballycummin areas close to the M20, it has been identified as a hot spot for further assessment in Limerick City and Council's noise action plan. TII had a role in the implementation of noise mitigation measures during the construction stage of the M20, with the installation of sound barriers required at certain points on the route. TII also has a role in the environmental noise regulations for the preparation of noise maps for major national roads to assist local authorities developing noise action plans. However, the development of noise action plans and the provision of sound barriers and other mitigation measures are matters for the individual local authorities. I understand that Limerick City and County Council has undertaken to make information on the progress of its noise action plan publicly available and to keep residents' groups informed.

The Minister of Transport recognises the importance of funding provided for the renewal and protection of the road network. The main issue the Senator is raising today relates to the problems with the noise these residents are enduring every day of the week. As the Minister's answer makes very clear, that is a matter for Limerick City and County Council.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for setting that out very clearly. There was considerable confusion and passing from Billy to Jack going on between the three organisations. This written answer clearly lays out the criteria involved. While I understand that TII has said it helped with the noise barriers, Iarnród Éireann then came along and removed those noise barriers. There is no joined-up thinking between different organisations. The residents' quality of life has greatly deteriorated. We will go back to Limerick City and County Council. I thank the Minister of State for the response. It has listed the criteria clearly and I hope the noise action plan can be put in place. We will be putting pressure on the council to do so.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I am given to understand that there has been some clearance of planting and vegetation along the M20 at the Glencairn and Ballycummin estates as part of the work on the restoration of the Limerick to Foynes railway line. A replanting plan is currently being developed by Irish Rail and other stakeholders. At the same time, while incorporating vegetation may provide some visual screening to the M20 motorway, as we all know it is not anticipated to mitigate the noise from the M20 motorway. While it will look well in time, it will not prevent the noise.

Local authorities need to use the results of noise mapping exercises to develop noise action plans and implement the measures identified in these plans to mitigate such noise. As such, it is for local authorities to fund and implement these measures.