Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 December 2025
339. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Transport if he will be providing additional funding for road resurfacing in 2025, broken down by local authority; and the total allocations to each council in 2026, in tabular form. [73836/25]
View answerThe 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 supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is a matter for the local authority.
On 14th February 2025 I announced an Exchequer investment of €713 million in our regional and local roads across the State which represents an overall increase of over 8% in funding this year.
Following a mid-year review of regional and local road grant programme expenditure, local authorities were notified of an additional allocation of €10 million for their Restoration Improvement Programmes. This additional funding was welcomed by local authorities and was fully expended by year end.
As regards the funding allocated to and drawn down by each local authority for the maintenance and improvement of regional and local roads in 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. The 2025 payments booklet will be available on the Oireachtas Digital Library shortly.
As regards 2026, regional and local road grant allocations will be finalised following the publication of the Revised Estimates Volume and will take into account the expenditure outturn on projects and programmes in the preceding year. Within the budget available, 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. The main focus of the grants continues to be the protection and renewal of the regional and local road network.
As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the operation and management of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is also subject to the Infrastructure Guidelines and the necessary statutory approvals. In this context, TII is best placed to advise you in relation to this.
The allocations process for national roads in 2026 is underway and allocations will be announced in the coming weeks.
Noting the above position, I have referred your question to TII for a direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
