Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department works with local authorities in the delivery of services; and if so, the details of same. [42569/12]

Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department engage with local authorities in the provision of services and if so the details of same. [42590/12]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 270 and 271 together.

My Department has responsibility for policy in relation to the transport, tourism and sport sectors and regularly engages with Local Authorities on these issues either directly or indirectly through its agencies. In particular:

funding is provided by the National Transport Authority to the local authorities in the Greater Dublin area, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford for the implementation of a variety of projects including Quality Bus Corridor enhancements, traffic management, cycle and pedestrian schemes and footpaths; while the  improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the responsibility of the relevant local authority to be funded from own resources, this funding is supplemented by State road grants paid by my Department through the National Roads Authority;

capital funding is provided to Local Authorities under the Department's Sports Capital and Local Authority Swimming Pools Programmes:

the Department engages with Local Authorities under the major emergency management framework at national level and also individual units of my Department such as the Air Accident Investigation Unit and the Irish Coast Guard engage directly with the local authority emergency response agencies and; the Department also advises all local authorities on their road haulage legislation enforcement obligations.