Varadkar to review road and rail projects

A REVIEW of spending on new road and rail projects has been announced by Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar.

Mr Varadkar said he will review each new transport infrastructure project against the need to ensure existing roads and rail routes are properly maintained.

The review follows the publication by the National Roads Authority of a new report which found almost €3 billion is needed to make the State’s local regional and national secondary road network safe.

The Minister’s review could potentially halt key transport investment programmes including Metro North, the reopening of the Navan Railway line and new road building schemes in Clare, Galway, Longford and Wicklow, which were being progressed under the last government’s four-year plan.

In a statement last night Mr Varadkar told The Irish Times: “If we stuck to the plan left to us by the last government, not only would we be unable to keep up with the backlog of repairs, but the situation would actually get worse.”

The Minister who has in recent weeks been briefed by senior officials on key issues facing the department is understood to be concerned after the National Roads Authority put the cost of the backlog of urgent repairs to the non-primary routes at €2.7 billion. This figure was in advance of the severe weather conditions at the start of the year.

“Before we start work on any new infrastructure projects, we have to ensure that existing infrastructure is properly maintained. That is why I am conducting a full review of capital spending with a view to prioritising the investments that we already have,” Mr Varadkar said.

Last night a press spokesman for Mr Varadkar said he could not say which projects would “categorically not proceed” but emphasised there had been “a change in priorities” and that the thinking was moving towards maintenance of existing roads and railways.