28th July 2023
A second tranche of funding has been announced today to improve access to rural homes, farms and businesses by upgrading rural roads and laneways, bringing the 2023 totals for Carlow and Kilkenny to €540,772 and €641,753 respectively.
Announcing additional nationwide funding of almost €16 million for repairs and improvement works on our rural roads and laneways under the Local Improvement Scheme, my government colleague Minister Heather Humphries emphasised how critical good roads are for our rural communities, and noted that this record investment under the Local Improvement Scheme will make a huge difference in terms of local access and connectivity.
We are all familiar with those roads and laneways within our own counties that are full of potholes and in desperate need of repair. Often these are non-public roads and lanes, not normally maintained by local authorities, but nonetheless they are vital pieces of rural infrastructure that provide people with access to homes, farms and businesses, as well as outdoor amenities such as our lakes, rivers or beaches.
The funding being delivered under this scheme will help close this gap and upgrade or repair these roads and lanes, to the benefit of so many families, businesses, and in particular farmers.
This year's total national funding of almost €30 million is more than double the allocation provided last year, and this is to allow our local authorities to address the backlog of applications that they currently face. The scale of this investment is a clear example of Government’s commitment to supporting our rural communities through our five year rural development strategy, ‘Our Rural Future’. and I'm delighted to see a really significant influx of funding to Carlow and Kilkenny.
In the first round of funding Carlow received €304,736, while Kilkenny received €361,156. The second tranche sees €263,036 allocated to Carlow, while Kilkenny's allocation is €280,597. This means in total across 2023 Carlow has received €540,772, while Kilkenny has received €641,753. A county by county breakdown across both tranches of funding is available here.
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