DÁIL ÉIREANN AN COMHCHOISTE UM IOMPAR, TURASÓIREACHT AGUS SPÓRT JOINT COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT, TOURISM AND SPORT Dé Céadaoin, 25 Meán Fómhair 2019 Wednesday, 25 September 2019 The Joint Committee met at 10.30 a.m. Comhaltaí a bhí i láthair / Members present: Imelda Munster,* Mark Daly, Catherine Murphy, Frank Feighan, Kevin O’Keeffe. John O’Mahony, Pádraig Ó Céidigh. * In éagmais / In the absence of Deputy Jonathan O’Brien. I láthair / In attendance: Deputies Declan Breathnach and Bernard J. Durkan and Senator Niall Ó Donnghaile. 1 JTTS Business of Joint Committee Chairman: Apologies have been received from Deputy Jonathan O’Brien. I propose that we go into private session to deal with some housekeeping matters. Is that agreed? Agreed. The joint committee went into private session at 10.32 a.m. and resumed in public session at 10.36 a.m. Julianstown Bypass: Discussion Chairman: I remind members, delegates and those in the Visitors Gallery to turn off their mobile phones completely as they may interfere with the recording and broadcasting equip- ment, even when left in silent mode. By virtue of section 17(2)(l) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by abso- lute privilege in respect of their evidence to the joint committee. However, if they are directed by it to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and continue to so do, they are entitled thereafter only to qualified privilege in respect of their evidence. They are directed that only evidence connected with the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given and asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, they should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable. Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against any person outside the Houses or an official, either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable. From the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport I welcome Mr. Dominic Mullaney and Mr. Cormac McNally, roads division. From Meath County Council I welcome Mr. Des Foley, director of services, with whom I worked for many years when he was town clerk in Drogheda. We miss him greatly. I am sorry that he is in County Meath, but on this occasion that is useful. From Meath County Council I also welcome Mr. Nicholas Whyatt, senior en- gineer. From Julianstown and District Community Association I welcome Niamh Bean Uí Loinsigh and Mr. Brendan Logue. I invite Mr. Mullaney to make his opening statement. Mr. Dominic Mullaney: I thank the Chairman for giving us the opportunity to attend to dis- cuss the Julianstown bypass project. Under the provisions of the relevant roads and road traffic legislation, the maintenance and improvement of regional and local roads, together with traffic management measures, are the statutory responsibilities of each local council. The Department for Transport, Tourism and Sport is responsible for overall roads policy, the provision of techni- cal guidance and, within the budget available to it, grant funding to assist local authorities with their road programmes. As a result of the cutbacks in funding for roads during the recession, grant funding for road improvement projects under the specific improvement and strategic re- gional and local road grant schemes had to be curtailed after 2013. This was necessary because expenditure on maintenance and renewal was falling well short of what was required to main- tain the regional and local road network adequately. 2 25 September 2019 Under Project Ireland 2040, there have been increases in grant funding for the regional and local road programme particularly in 2018 and 2019. This has allowed the Department to pro- vide local authorities with additional grant support for maintenance and renewal of the network. However, in order to avoid deterioration in the existing condition of the regional and local road network, 4,700 km of regional and local road pavement needs to be maintained and 4,700 km needs to be strengthened every year. This target is not being met at present. The maintenance target this year is 2,400 km and the rehabilitation target is 2,150 km. Overall, it is estimated on a conservative basis that expenditure of €630 million is needed per annum to keep the regional and local road network in a steady state condition. For this reason, the main focus of grant expenditure on regional and local roads continues to be on maintenance of the network. Project Ireland 2040 makes provision for the implementation of 12 regional and local road improvement projects, subject to necessary approvals, in the period to 2023. Outside of that, some limited provision is being made in the regional and local road capital budget for the appraisal of a pipeline of upgrade projects. This is intended to cover the appraisal of projects for development, if possible, in the later years of the national development plan. The scope for carrying pipeline projects through to development stage is dependent on the future availability of funding. If a local authority wishes to put forward a future project for consideration, it must com- ply with the requirements of the public spending code and the Department’s capital appraisal framework. The Department issued detailed guidance to local authorities in April 2018 setting out project appraisal requirements. Under the appraisal process, a preliminary appraisal has to be submitted on each proposed project. Projects costing over €5 million also need a detailed appraisal report if they progress beyond the preliminary appraisal stage. At preliminary appraisal, the local authority applica- tion needs to demonstrate sufficient analysis to underpin an assessment of the merits or other- wise of the scheme. Local authorities are required to outline what consideration has been given to investment options, including different transport modes and traffic management options. The preliminary appraisal also encompasses a preliminary multicriteria analysis which is used for comparing options. Meath County Council has prepared a draft preliminary business case for a bypass of Ju- lianstown. Further liaison is required with the council with a view finalising the council’s pre- liminary appraisal submission. Chairman: I thank Mr. Mullaney for his submission. I call on Mr. Des Foley from Meath County Council to make his opening statement. Mr. Des Foley: Meath County Council welcomes the opportunity to discuss traffic issues in Julianstown with the committee. Our vision for Julianstown, as set out in our county development plan, is to consolidate and strengthen the village through the provision of a well-defined village centre area, as well as to support a range of land uses which will benefit the residential population. The council is committed to playing its part to improve the quality of the built and natural environment of the village, while catering for the needs of the local community, as well as ensuring the village develops in a sustainable manner. On an average day more than 20,000 vehicles pass through the village on the R132. This 3 JTTS is despite the opening of the Drogheda bypass section of the M1 motorway in 2003. The high traffic volumes create a situation which is incompatible with the council’s long-term vision for Julianstown and which is likely to worsen as Drogheda and east Meath develop further. We, therefore, believe the provision of a traffic solution for the village is central to realising the as- pirations for Julianstown. The council raised the matter of the traffic situation in Julianstown directly with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport at a meeting in January 2017. Subsequently in March 2017, the director of services for transportation communicated with both the Department of Trans- port, Tourism and Sport and Transport Infrastructure Ireland requesting them to engage in dis- cussions about advancing a solution to the transport situation. In December 2018, the council also submitted a draft preliminary business case to the Department which concluded that there is a prima facie case for doing something to address the traffic volumes in Julianstown. The initial analysis also showed that a bypass of Julianstown emerged as the preferred option in both the multicriteria analysis and preliminary cost benefit analysis that were undertaken. The committee will appreciate that it is beyond the resources of Meath County Council to deliver the scale of intervention that is potentially required in Julianstown without capital grant support from central government. If this is forthcoming, the council would prioritise the pro- cess to identify and progress the optimum solution. In the meantime, the council has made provision of €800,000 in its capital investment pro- gramme 2019-2021 for traffic management measures for the village. Environmental studies are currently being undertaken on the proposed interim traffic management measures in preparation for an application to An Bord Pleanála for approval. Chairman: I call on Niamh Bean Uí Loinsigh of the Julianstown and District Community Association to make her contribution. Ms Niamh Uí Loinsigh: I thank the Chairman for inviting representatives of Julianstown and District Community Association to give evidence about the heavy traffic and its effect on the village of Julianstown in County Meath. Julianstown is a village of 600 people situated on the R132 road between Drogheda and junction No. 7 of the M1 motorway. The R132 used to be the old N1 Dublin-Belfast road. In 2003, the M1 motorway opened taking through traffic around Drogheda. However, the traffic volumes remained high and continue to be grossly excessive for a small village. While it might have been expected to alleviate traffic congestion in Julianstown, the M1 has had little effect since it remains the primary access route for traffic to south Drogheda and east Meath.