Brendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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1600. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if specific improvement grants will be reintroduced to progress and complete much needed road improvement works, such as the R561 in Inch-Keel and the R550 Dale Road in County Kerry, which previously benefited in some stretches; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30780/15]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads 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.

It is important to state that the role of Exchequer grants for regional and local roads is to supplement County Councils in their own resources spending this area. While Councils could apply in the past for grant funding for certain road improvement projects, budgetary constraints mean that the Specific Improvement Grants Scheme has been curtailed in order to maximise the funding available for repair and strengthening work of the road network.

The current financial realities are such that the budgets proposed for my Department for 2016 and 2017 indicate that capital funding will continue to be very tight, and the ability to increase allocations or progress new projects is limited. It is, of course, open to a County Council to fund such projects from its own resources.