Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
336. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Transport if he is aware of the document entitled "Interim Guidance on the placement of cables on roads" that was issued in 2025; if he is aware of concerns raised by industry; if he plans to address these concerns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29569/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraTo support a low carbon, climate-resilient future, the Programme for Government commits Ireland to making a 51% reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and sets us on a path to reach net-zero emissions by no later than 2050. The Climate Action Plan (CAP) provides the roadmap to meet this goal, seeking to transform Ireland into an international leader in the development and generation of high-quality renewable energy to promote sustainable social and economic development.
The CAP includes a series of measures to support Ireland’s renewables programme, including the accelerated delivery of onshore wind, offshore wind and solar through a competitive framework to reach 80% of electricity demand from renewable energy by 2030. It reflects the Government’s commitment to develop transformational policies, measures and actions required to meet the electricity sector’s carbon budget programme and sectoral emissions ceilings, while also recognising the critical role electricity will play in the decarbonisation of other sectors including heat, transport and industry.
To achieve these objectives, the CAP states: - “All relevant public bodies will carry out their functions in a manner which supports the achievement of the renewable electricity targets, including, but not limited to, the use of road and rail infrastructure to provide a route for grid infrastructure where this is the optimal solution.”
Roads and transportation stakeholders, including the Department of Transport, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, and the Road Management Office, produced ‘Interim Guidance’ to assist with the efficient delivery of grid infrastructure by the energy sector, whilst also seeking to mitigate the potential impact of electricity infrastructure beneath public roads and ensure the continued proper management of the road network.
The ’Interim Guidance’ was issued to Road Authorities under ‘Department of Transport Circular RW07 2025’, on 14th March 2025. Its primary purpose was to support Road Authorities in their role licensing road openings or making submissions to Planning Authorities for the placement of Medium or High Voltage infrastructure under the public road network. This ‘Interim Guidance’ has now been updated under Circular RW 05 of 2026 to provide additional clarity and information on their application.
The updated version is titled ‘Interim Guidance to Road Authorities regarding the proposed placement of Medium or High Voltage electricity assets, including ducts, cables, and associated infrastructure under public road – Version 2’, a copy of which is available for download from roadguidelines.ie.
The Joint Electricity Transport Working Group (JET) has been established to provide a forum for senior representatives from the roads and electricity stakeholders to meet and support the achievement of renewable electricity targets.
JET oversee the development and implementation of solutions to mitigate or remove barriers to the placement of distribution and transmission-level grid projects along public roads, without compromising the road network, in situations where the use of the public road network has been identified as the optimal route for those projects.
Further to this, the Joint Utilities and Transport Clearing House (JUTCH) is a non-statutory taskforce established as part of Action 21 of the Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan of 3rd December 2026. The purpose of the Clearing House is to improve collaboration between all utilities in the delivery of critical infrastructure.
The group comprises state utilities, transport infrastructure providers, and national and local government working together to improve the structures for cooperation and coordination in the delivery of critical infrastructure.
