Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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222. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if specific funding will be allocated to Monaghan County Council to upgrade the Ballybay-Cootehill road R190 in view of constant flooding on that route and the danger to motorists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45765/14]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads such as the R190 is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities' own resources supplemented by State road grants.  The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the local authority.

The economic reality of recent years has meant significant reductions in roads budgets across the board and this has resulted in some grant programmes being curtailed, including the Specific and Strategic Grant Programmes, in order to protect funding for road maintenance and repair. However it is open to Monaghan County Council to undertake drainage works on the R190 from its Restoration Improvement or Discretionary Grant programmes.

All funding for regional and local roads in 2014 has been fully allocated. I will announce the 2015 grants early in 2015.

It is important to reiterate that the role of Exchequer grants for regional and local roads is to supplement local authorities in their spending in this area and it is also open to Monaghan County Council to fund this work from its own resources.