Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael)
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305. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the length in kilometres, and as a percentage of the road network, for local tertiary roads in each county, in tabular form; the levels of funding allocated in 2023, 2024 and 2025 to each county for their repair and restoration; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39189/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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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 Councils' own resources, which are supplemented by State grants for regional and local roads.

On 14th February 2025 I announced an Exchequer investment of €713 million for our regional and local roads across the State which represents an overall increase of over 8% in funding this year. The main focus of the grants continues to be the protection and renewal of the regional and local road network.

Within the budget available for the regional and local road grant programme, the objective is to allocate funding to eligible local authorities on as equitable a basis as possible taking the length of the road network into account. It is envisaged that grants will continue to be made available on that basis.

Local tertiary roads account for 27% of the regional and local road network in Ireland. Within the budget available to my Department, grant funding is allocated on the basis of grant programmes and not on the basis of the category of road. The allocation of funding across specific roads or across categories is a matter for each local authority, having regard to the funding available to it from local and central sources as well as its particular priorities.

The main Regional and Local Road Grant programmes are focussed on specific policy objectives i.e. surface sealing to protect the road surface from water damage, road strengthening based on pavement condition rating to lengthen the life of roads and a Discretionary Grant Scheme which allows for a specified range of activities including winter maintenance. These 3 grant programmes account for most of the grant funding and are allocated taking into account the length of the road network and traffic factors in a particular local authority area. Apart from a requirement that 15% of the road strengthening grant is spent on regional roads, the allocation of funding to different categories of road is entirely a matter for decision by each local authority.

As regards the funding allocated to and drawn down by each local authorities for the maintenance of regional and local roads in each of the years 2023 to 2025, details of the regional and local road allocations and payments to local authorities are outlined in the regional and local road allocations and payments booklets which are available on the Oireachtas Digital Library.