Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 117: To ask the Minister for Transport if he is satisfied that Transport 21 can and will be delivered on time and within cost; the areas least likely to meet these targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9985/08]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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At the launch of Transport 21, the Government identified the projects in the national roads, public transport and regional airports sectors that it wishes to see prioritised for development in the ten-year period from 2006 to 2015 and provided indicative completion dates for the major projects contained.

Significant progress has been made on Transport 21 in its first two years and a number of projects have been completed, are under construction or are well advanced in planning terms.

Most national road projects are now being completed ahead of schedule and almost all of the projects opened in 2007 were on or ahead of time, while significant advances have been made on the development of public transport projects. While the majority of projects will be delivered ahead of or in accordance with the indicative timetable published at the launch of Transport 21, the huge scale of the programme is such that adjustments to the timescale for individual projects is inevitable. The value of the ten-year financial framework is that it gives us the flexibility to deal with this in an effective way. The necessary revisions to completion dates have arisen for a range of reasons including changes to the scope of projects arising from public consultation, planning issues, procurement issues and archaeological difficulties.

The overall budget for Transport 21 is €34 billion and I am satisfied that the projects identified will be delivered within this budget.