A proposal to invest more than €3 million in Galway City's footpaths over the next three years will go before Elected Members at the plenary meeting of Galway City Council on Monday 12 October 2026.

Under the plan, an additional €1,033,960 would be raised each year through a proposed 10% adjustment to the Local Property Tax rate. Elected Members can approve this change by majority vote as a reserved function at a council meeting.

The extra funding would be ringfenced to recruit additional operations capacity to deliver more cost-effective repairs, restoration and new footpaths across Galway City's three local electoral areas.

Galway City Council's Road and Transport (Operations) section has indicated it would welcome the additional resources to accelerate the renewal of ageing footpaths in housing estates across the city.

Many of Galway's housing estates are more than 30 years old, and deterioration is increasingly evident, raising concerns about accessibility, trip hazards, pedestrian safety and the overall quality of the residential environment.

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The package would establish one additional dedicated footpath improvement crew, boosting the Council's delivery capacity by about 50%, from two crews to three.

Based on the output of the existing teams, the expanded operation is expected to lift delivery from roughly 42 to approximately 63 housing estates per year. Over three years, this would allow improvement works in about 189 housing estates.

The additional allocation would cover staffing for the new crew; concrete, aggregate and reinforcement materials; plant, fleet and specialist equipment; contracted JCB and lorry services; and the operational costs required to deliver works safely.

This investment is intended to shift the Council from a largely reactive approach to a planned, risk-based programme of footpath renewal.

Priority would be given to locations with the greatest safety, accessibility and condition needs, including areas serving schools, community facilities, public transport and residents with mobility difficulties.

The funding would also enable the Council to appoint suitably qualified contractors for higher-risk or more complex sites, including those requiring enhanced traffic management, specialist equipment or additional pedestrian-safety measures.

The Council considers the additional allocation necessary to address the scale and age of the existing footpath backlog and to protect the long-term quality and accessibility of Galway's residential infrastructure.

Increased direct-delivery capacity is expected to expand the overall programme and reduce the unit cost of individual footpath projects.