Regional Development Minister, Danny Kennedy has pledged a renewed effort to tackling the problems of unadopted roads in housing developments.

The Minister was responding to an Assembly motion on unadopted roads in housing developments and said he recognised the difficulties faced by people living in problem sites.

Mr Kennedy said: "The issue of unadopted roads on private housing sites can be a cause of great distress for some people. While the primary responsibility for providing new roads and sewers in housing developments lies with the developer, I want to see more urgent progress.

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"I have asked my officials in Roads Service and Northern Ireland Water to refocus and renew their efforts in dealing with this issue. A great deal of work has already been done, for example, over the last four years, Roads Service has taken enforcement action on 340 sites, requiring the developers to complete the necessary works to bring the roads and sewers up to adoption standard.

"In doing so, the Department has also called in millions of pounds of bonds to complete and adopt roads in housing developments. All of this work has benefitted thousands of householders."

Turning to some of the issues raised during the debate, the Minister said he wanted to clarify a number of inaccuracies.

He said: "My Department does have sound data on the numbers of housing roads that have been determined for adoption and on the numbers of those roads where there are known problems because the developer has run into difficulties.

"Let me make it clear that when we talk about unfinished roads in housing developments, these are not abandoned roads because we know about them and are working to get them completed, preferably by the developer."

(CD/GK)