John Perry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 224: To ask the Minister for Transport the rules and regulation from his Department which are issued to local authorities for speed limits and signage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31100/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The Road Traffic Act 2004 establishes the legislative basis for the application of speed limits on all public roads. The Act sets down specific speed limit values that apply on a default basis to different types of road. In addition, section 9 of the Act provides that the elected members of county and city councils may make by-laws for the purpose of effecting the deployment of special speed limits, which are set out in the Act, on specified roads in lieu of the default speed limits. It also provides that county and city managers may by order apply speed limits on roads where road works are being undertaken for a specified period not exceeding 12 months.

In January 2005, I made regulations, the Road Traffic (Speed Limit — Traffic Signs) Regulations 2005 (SI No. 10 of 2005), prescribing the regulatory traffic signs displaying metric units of measurement, km/h, that the road authorities must provide on public roads to indicate the speed limit in force. This range of traffic signs can be deployed to indicate that a default speed limit, a special speed limit or a road works speed limit is in force.

Section 9 of the 2004 Act also provides that the Minister for Transport may issue guidelines to county and city councils in relation to the making of special speed limit by-laws. I issued such guidelines on 18 April 2005. A copy of the guidelines is available in the Oireachtas Library and may also be viewed on my Department's website www.transport.ie under roads-publications.