The NI Roads Minister, Conor Murphy has welcomed the findings of an independent assessment of the investment required for the structural maintenance of NI's 25,000km road network.

The report was presented at a meeting of the Regional Development Committee by Professor Martin Snaith, a leading authority in the field of structural maintenance and road condition assessment.

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Minister Murphy said: "I welcome the findings of this key report by an eminent expert in this field.

"The report highlights the case for a significantly enhanced level of investment to carry out much needed maintenance repair work.

"It is important that the Executive is aware of all funding challenges when deciding what its priorities should be," he said.

The report recommends that the overall Structural Maintenance budget should be increased to around £108million per annum at today's prices, giving an equivalent expenditure of around £4,300 per carriageway km.

This is considerably lower than equivalent expenditure in England and Wales and comparable to that in the South.

(BMcC/GK)