Local and regional road funding for 2022 up 4% to nearly €600m

Overall funding to repair roads countrywide will increase to €597 million following the Government announcement of a 4 per cent increase in regional and local road funding for 2022

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said overall funding would be higher as the exchequer grants are intended to “supplement local authorities’ own expenditure on regional and local road projects”. He said the grants do not represent the total investment in regional and local roads for this year.

But additional cash to remedy problems on routes across the State has failed to resolve problems in many localities. And one such area is Ros Muc in the Connemara Gaeltacht.

“The roads in the area have no cycle lanes, no walkways, not even a white line. There is a road in Ros Muc past the football field and passing Pádraig Pearse’s cottage which is only a cluster of potholes. We have the worst regional and local roads in Ireland,” said Co Galway resident Mánus Ó Conaire of Iorras Aithneach. “A 4 per cent increase is not going to change that, unfortunately.”

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Mr Ó Conaire is a veteran campaigner for better roads in the Connemara region. He represents Bóithre Chonamara (Connemara Roads group) in discussions with Galway County Council engineers and believes inflation is likely to absorb the increase. “Senior management in the council have always told us they would like to do the work, but they don’t have the money,” he said.

He noted four bridges in the area which, like many roads in Connemara, were not wide enough to qualify for designation of regional road status. “Some of those bridges have cracks in them,” he said.

Mr Ó Conaire said he heard there is money in Co Galway’s allocation to restore several of the bridges, but queried the meaning of restore.

“To what level will the bridge be restored, two cars cannot pass on them as it is. Will they restore roads [and] to what [extent]?” he asked.

Bóithre Chonamara’s social media is populated with videos and images of damaged roads and bridges as well as interviews with locals. Footage includes routes that have been spray painted to alert users to subsidence hazards and potholes.

Road safety

The funding will allow about 3,100km of roads to be maintained and 2,550km to be strengthened.

Minister for State at the Department of Transport Hildegarde Naughton, a Galway West TD, said the grant represented “a 28 percent increase in funding for local roads since 2019.” The Minister said the resource will help Galway city and county councils ensure improved connectivity, but will also enable them invest in road safety across the county.

Ms Naughton referred specifically to the county’s allocation on Galway Bay FM: “We’ll be looking at investing in bridge rehabilitation across Galway, including at Leitir Mór, the Salmon Weir Bridge and the bridge on Millstreet.

“And we’ll be looking to tackle roads affected by flooding, which is a safety concern. We’ll be looking at places like the Dyke Road and Merchants Road.”

The full allocation of funding by local authority is available here