Route corridors for greenway to Galway due in coming weeks

New route corridor options for the long-delayed Athlone to Galway Greenway project are set to be published in the coming weeks.

Earlier this year, council planners said they were making a "fresh start" on the project, which had been "paused" in 2015 over strong objections from farmers and other landowners who would have been impacted by it, particularly in East Galway.

A first round of public consultations on the study area for the project, which would complete the Dublin to Galway Greenway, took place in August.

The study area stretches as far north as Tuam and as far south as Banagher, Portumna and Gort, indicating that a large number of possible route corridor options could be under consideration for the long-delayed project. Locally, the study area incorporates the area north of Athlone, from Hill of Berries, directly across in a straight line just south of the village of Curraghboy and across to Ballygar. To the south, it generally follows the route of the Shannon, down past Clonown, Shannonbridge, Shannon Harbour, Banagher and into Portumna.

Now a second period of public consultation - which includes the publication of "proposed route corridor options" - is due to begin in late January and last for five weeks.

"The purpose of this consultation is to examine and receive feedback on the options developed, and to help identify a preferred route corridor," said the Galway to Athlone cycleway project team.

Due to the current Covid-19 restrictions, there will be no public meetings as part of the new round of public consultation. Instead the new material, including maps and feedback forms, will be made available online in a "virtual consultation room".

Interested parties will also be given an opportunity to chat with the project team by arrangement, either by phone or video. Further details on the public consultation are expected in early January.

After the route corridors are identified, a preferred route corridor will then be chosen, following further public consultation. At that stage, work would then commence on identified specific route options within the route corridor.

Meanwhile, Fine Gael Senator Aisling Dolan announced, shortly before Christmas, that the Galway to Athlone Cycleway project office in Ballinasloe was to receive funding of €300,000 toward its work from Transport Infrastructure Ireland.

"In the first round of public consultation, we saw over 600 submissions, with 200 alone coming through my office in Ballinasloe," commented Senator Dolan.