Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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391. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if any section of the various roads Acts can be used to circumvent a local authority's responsibility with respect to section 180 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 with respect to taking an estate in charge; if so, what section; if not, if he will issue guidance to planning authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53857/13]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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In relation to residential estates which have been completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority in accordance with the permission, section 180 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 provides that the planning authority must, if requested to do so by the developer or by the majority of the owners of the houses involved, initiate the procedures in section 11 of the Roads Act 1993 for declaring the road(s) to be public roads, for whose maintenance the local authority will then be responsible. Section 11 of the Roads Act empowers a local authority, by order, to declare any road over which a public right of way exists to be a public road. Before making an order the local authority must be satisfied the road is of general public utility, consider the financial implications of taking the road in charge and consult with the public/consider any objections received. The consideration of the objections and the making of the order declaring the road to be a public road is a reserved function, so that the decision whether to take the road in charge is ultimately one for the discretion of the elected members.

In relation to estates which have not have been completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority and where enforcement proceedings have not been commenced within the relevant period, section 180 also provides that the planning authority must, if requested to do so by the majority of the owners (but not the developer) initiate the procedures in section 11 of the Roads Act. However in this case the section provides that the provision in section 11 of the Roads Act requiring the authority to consider the financial implications of taking the road in charge is to be disregarded. I am not aware of an issue in relation to the above provisions of the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007, or any other provision of those Acts, being used to circumvent the provisions of section 180 of the Planning Act.