McCarthy Report: Roads

Mena

McCarthy Report wrote:

TRANSPORT
- Cuts to road maintenance programme to save €20 million

Anyone else think that's taking the piss? It's not like the roads are in any great state as it is...

Fine, so something has to be done about the disaster that is our financial system at the moment, but that's a step too far!

R.O.R

There's a Road Maintenance Program?

Well I never........you learn something everyday.

Cionád

The report also contains "Introduction of road pricing"

An Bord Snip wrote:

Introduction of road pricing
The Group is mindful that Government policy thus far in respect of road pricing is that it
should be seriously considered at some stage but that it is more appropriate to do so once
adequate public transport and road upgrades are in place. That said, the Group is strongly of
the view that over the course of the next few years significant advances on transport
infrastructure will have been made under Transport 21 and therefore it is appropriate now to
initiate an examination of how road pricing is to be introduced.
Road pricing can have a dual purpose as a revenue raising and demand management tool
and both elements should be exploited. Moreover, the introduction of pricing mechanisms
should not be restricted to new infrastructure; rather a full analysis of all existing road routes
(including bridges and tunnels) should be undertaken with a view to implementing a
comprehensive and integrated nationwide road pricing system. The Group considers that
this approach would represent a fundamental structural reform that would (a) provide a
significant ongoing source of Exchequer revenues if introduced at a high enough level (b)
broaden the revenue base away from the State’s income and enterprise activity and (c)
promote more rational economically efficient activity by road users, including promoting the
use of public transport where appropriate.

Seems very vague, and as public transport has already been cut nationwide (and the next section of the report recommends cutting of "targetted services"), I can't see how it is viable in the short-to-medium term.

As for road maintenance, I'd say savings could be made if repairs were done properly, instead of lumping tar into a whole, creating a bump instead of a pothole, and it being loosened over the course of a few months, only for the repeat to happen again.