New Athlone bridge could become 'Instagram location' for visitors

Local authority planners are hoping the new Greenway bridge over the River Shannon will become an "Instagram location" where visitors to Athlone take social media snaps to mark their crossing of the historic divide between Leinster and Connaught.

In this respect, the new amenity could become a local equivalent to crossing the Equator line, or the border between the US and Canada, a council meeting was told last month.

Last week, the bridge moved another step closer to becoming a reality, with the announcement by the Government of €8.1 million in funding towards the Galway to Athlone section of the Dublin to Galway Greenway.

The majority of the €8.1m will be spent on the bridge, with construction work pencilled in to start next summer.

Once work gets underway, the bridge will take somewhere between 14 and 18 months to construct, meaning it could open before the end of 2022, provided everything goes according to schedule.

Part of the €8.1m in funding will also go toward work on extending the Greenway from the White Gates, on the Ballymahon Road, to the Athlone Marina, a section that will cost in the region of €600,000.

A contractor has been appointed for the White Gates to the Marina section, with work set to start later this month and be completed by April or May of next year.

In addition, some of the money announced this week will be put towards design work on the Greenway from Athlone Castle to Galway city.

This section has been a sticking point in the past, but fresh public consultations commenced in September ahead of the scheduled publication of five "corridor options" for the Athlone to Galway route next January.

Last week's announcement of the Greenway funding was widely welcomed by politicians both locally and nationally.

"For Athlone to really reap the tourism and economic benefits that the Greenway can, and will, bring, we always needed to get the track in to town and therefore get the people into town," said Athlone's Mayor, Cllr Aengus O'Rourke.

"Easter of 2021 will see us reach town at the Marina, beside the Radisson Hotel, and, during 2021 meaningful work will be underway to construct the bridge over the River Shannon.

"The new bridge... will be a hugely significant and very impressive addition to the fixed infrastructure in the centre of Athlone," he stated.

Cllr Frankie Keena said the funding "will go a long way in delivering a safe and sustainable environment for active travel throughout our communities," while Cllr John Dolan said the existing Greenway had illustrated the benefits this further development would bring from a tourism and wellbeing perspective.

"I will be pushing for even more funding to help the Athlone area get the full benefit of this great facility," said Cllr Dolan.

Local TD Denis Naughten said the funding was "a significant boost" for what he described as a vital tourism project from Athlone to Ballinasloe and on to the City of the Tribes.

"While this project through East Galway is at an early stage of planning, I hope - in the short term - that Athlone Castle and the battle site at Aughrim can be linked using both on-road and off-road sections to create a 'Siege Cycleway' linking both historic sites.

"I believe this would enhance the local tourism offering as well as attract visitors to Aughrim, which was the bloodiest battlefield in Irish history," said Deputy Naughten.

"The bridge over the Shannon and the link to Ballinasloe, also provides an opportunity to develop safe routes for children in South Westmeath, South Roscommon, and East Galway to cycle to school as well as reducing their carbon footprint," the TD added.

Westmeath Minister of State Peter Burke stated that the local funding was part of a total of €63.5m being awarded for Greenways nationally for 2021, which is the highest single-year amount ever allocated for Greenways here.

"Prior to the Covid pandemic, our local authorities were funded 60% by the Government for (Greenway) provisions.

"However, in recognition of the significant financial constraints put on our county councils since the onset of the restrictions, Government has increased this funding to 100% of the cost," he said.

"Our Greenway network is a fantastic resource for families and people of all ages to enjoy. I look forward to the Athlone Greenway being developed and getting out on my bike to enjoy it in the period ahead," the Minister of State concluded.