- Minister confirms distribution of additional €14 million funding for 2025
- Funding increases the total budget under the Local Improvement Scheme for 2025 to €30 million
- Investment will improve access to rural homes, farms and outdoor amenities
Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary TD, has announced a further €14 million investment in our rural roads and laneways.
The allocation represents a significant increase to the 2025 funding available under the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) – bringing the overall investment to a record €30 million for the year.
The Local Improvement Scheme is designed to support the continued improvement of non-public roads in rural communities and improves access to rural homes and farms, as well as outdoor amenities such as our lakes, rivers, mountains and beaches.
These roads and laneways are not normally maintained by locally authorities, however they represent a vital piece of infrastructure for rural residents.
The allocation of additional funding comes following engagement between the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht and local authorities.
The county allocations are based on the level of works that each local authority indicated they could complete before the end of the year and represent the Minister’s commitment to increasing funding for our rural roads.
The LIS scheme was re-introduced in 2017 and to date, over 20,000 landowners and rural residents have benefitted, with over 4,800 roads upgraded under the Scheme.
Announcing the additional funding, Minister Calleary said:
“I am delighted to have secured a further €14 million for the Scheme which almost doubles our investment this year. The €30 million which I have made available to our local authorities this year represents the highest annual funding level since the scheme was re-introduced.
“This additional funding demonstrates my commitment to improving connectivity for rural residents – whether it be access to homes, farms or outdoor amenities.”
Under LIS, local authorities are responsible for identifying and prioritising roads for improvement works under the scheme, in consultation with residents/landowners.
The works must be completed before the end of the year.
Additional funding includes €1,578,016 for County Mayo.