Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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21. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans for future investment in the secondary routes in County Meath. [15150/19]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of the relevant local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from the Council's own resources supplemented by State road grants.  The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the Council.

During the recession there were substantial cutbacks in the funding available for State grants for national, regional and local road programmes.  Project Ireland 2040 does provide for the gradual build up in funding for the road network but it will take some time to reach the level required for the adequate maintenance and renewal of the network. Grants in the three main grant categories (Restoration Improvement, Discretionary Grant and Restoration Maintenance) are allocated based on the length of regional and local roads within a local authority area of responsibility and it is envisaged that grants will continue to be made available on that basis.

There is limited scope at present for funding projects under the Specific and Strategic Grant Programmes and any projects proposed by local authorities for consideration under these Grant Programmes are assessed by the Department on a case-by-case basis. All projects put forward by local authorities for consideration must comply with the requirements of the Public Spending Code and my Department's Capital Appraisal Framework and it is important for local authorities to prioritise projects within their overall area of responsibility with these requirements in mind. 

Under the capital project appraisal process a Preliminary Appraisal has to be submitted in relation to each proposed project.  Once an appraisal is received it is assessed taking into account other competing projects and the overall roads budget.

I have been pleased to be able to allocate significantly increased grant funding to Meath County Council in respect of regional and local roads over the last two years. In this context grant allocations to Meath in 2019 total €19,676,500 which is an increase of over 45% compared to the 2017 allocation.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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22. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the discussions he has had with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, on the development of the Dublin-Galway greenway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14771/19]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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Last year I asked Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) to manage the development of the Dublin-Galway greenway project.  Since then my officials have been involved in a number of discussions with TII to progress a range of matters in relation to the project. In particular, they have discussed the construction of an underpass under the railway line in Athlone this Easter and the subsequent extension of the greenway to the banks of the Shannon.

Further discussions have also been held with TII and representatives from Meath and Kildare County Councils and Waterways Ireland to progress and finalise sections of this greenway in counties Kildare and Meath. 

As a result of this work, it is planned that it will be possible to cycle off-road from Maynooth to the banks of the Shannon later this year, a distance of approximately 100km and a very significant addition to our greenways infrastructure.

In regard to further progress of the greenway west of the Shannon, officials are working with TII and other stakeholders to put in place a process to develop a Code of Best Practice for Greenways as set out in the Strategy for the Future Development of National and Regional Greenways.