Rural road repairs in Leitrim could take over 20 years without increased funding

It could take 20 years or more to repair all the rural roads in Leitrim currently on the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) due to ongoing funding shortfalls.

At the May meeting of Leitrim County Council, Cllr Gary Prior proposed a motion to seek a meeting with Minister for Transport, Darragh O’Brien TD, and Minister for Rural and Community Development, Dara Calleary, to request additional funding for the LIS and to push for increased support for the Community Involvement Scheme (CIS) in the county.

At the July meeting, Cllr Prior informed members that Minister Darragh O’Brien was unavailable to meet with councillors “in the near future.”

In 2024, nine roads under the LIS were completed, leaving 152 still outstanding. From 2017 to 2024, a total of 143 roads were completed. 

Due to serious funding constraints, only seven roads are expected to be completed this year, highlighting the need for a significant one-off funding allocation to clear the current waiting list.

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Cllr Brendan Barry pointed out that “with over 150 on a list and doing seven a year, that’s over 20 years to get through the list that’s there.”

Donegal County Council has expressed interest in meeting with Leitrim councillors soon to discuss shared concerns, and Cllr Prior suggested that the LIS should be one of the topics, noting that Donegal also has a substantial backlog. 

The long delays and growing waiting list are causing frustration, with Cllr Prior saying he receives weekly phone calls from people hoping to be added to the LIS list. 

The Council has decided to work through the current list before reopening the scheme, to ensure fairness and preserve the priority of those already on it.

“We’re no further on in the last number of years,” he said.

Cllr Pádraig Fallon proposed organising a delegation of councillors to meet with Minister O’Brien at his office as soon as possible.

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Other councillors agreed that more pressure needs to be applied to the Department of Transport to move the issue forward.

“We have to persist with this about the LIS and CIS. Many of the roads on the CIS have a hefty local contribution and communities have indicated that they’re willing to do that, yet the mainstream money can’t seem to be found,” said Cllr Paddy O’Rourke.

It was agreed that another letter will be sent to the Minister to try to arrange a meeting and seek progress on the issue.