A map showing the Athlone-Galway cycleway public consultation area extending from the west side of Athlone (in red) to link up with publicly-owned lands south of Cornafulla (in blue). A separate route corridor option could potentially see the cycleway run parallel to the Athlone to Galway train line.

Two options outlined for cycleway route west from Athlone

Adrian Cusack

Published: Wed 10 Feb 2021, 5:59 PM

Last updated: Wed 10 Feb 2021, 6:04 PM

Details of two proposed route corridors for the continuation of the greenway west from Athlone have emerged.

The two corridors are outlined as part of a public consultation process on the Athlone to Galway cycleway project, which has attracted significant interest, with over 1,000 visits to the online consultation portal in its first week.

There were also some 100 phone calls to the project office in Ballinasloe last week.

Overall, there are five route corridor options for the cycleway from Athlone to Galway. But all five incorporate one or other of the two options that extend westwards from Athlone before expanding out into a variety of potential directions that could veer as far north as Mountbellew, or as far south as Portumna and Gort.

The cycleway's pathway out of Athlone will begin at Athlone Castle. One of the route corridor options would see it connecting with the route of the Athlone to Galway railway line, and running parallel to it.

Project coordinator Michael Kelly said the cycleway project team would explore this option, but he noted that it would still require the purchase of privately-owned land, as Iarnród Éireann's aim of eventually double-tracking the railway line meant it had no land it could provide for the cycleway project.

The other option could see the cycleway loop around by the flood defences that are being erected near the Shannon Callows on the west side of Athlone, before continuing through the wider Baylough and Summerhill areas, and onwards in a south-westerly direction towards Shannonbridge.

A map showing the various route corridor options for the cycleway from Athlone to Galway. There are two route corridor options immediately west of Athlone.

Mr Kelly stressed that nothing has been decided at this stage and the responses to the public consultation would inform the eventual route selection.

He said the aim was to use State-owned land for the cycleway, where possible, and the route corridor option which veers south, towards Shannonbridge, would link in with State-owned lands around the Bord na Móna railway, south of Cornafulla.

Depending on the route corridor that's selected, the cycleway will either veer northwards, to Ballinasloe, before it reaches Shannonbridge, or else it will continue to the village of Shannonbridge and onwards from there to Portumna.

"There are five corridors and that has to be narrowed down to a focus on one corridor," said Mr Kelly. "At the moment, it's a case of, 'Are we going through Mountbellew, or are we going through Portumna?' We don't know.

"We have to narrow it down to a (single) route corridor, and then to a narrow route within that."

The development of the cycleway was paused six years ago due to objections from farmers and other landowners who may have been impacted, particularly in East Galway.

Mr Kelly said the cycleway team was keen to work with landowners on the specifics of any potential route that might be chosen, and was hoping to reach voluntary, rather than compulsory, purchase agreements for land that may be required.

Mr Kelly, said there was a great deal of flexibility within the route corridor options that were recently unveiled.

"If we get a huge opposition from private landowners to one particular corridor, and get a huge welcome on another one, that is going to influence things," he said.

"We're very flexible. The flexibility of a cycleway allows us to traverse the perimeter of land holdings, and go around the boundaries of them. We don't need to go through the middle of farms," he pointed out.

"At the end of the day, a lot will depend on the feedback we get, and so far we're getting a lot of positive responses.

"There has been a lot of interaction. We have had some people saying, 'I'd prefer if it didn't go through my farm,' but not many."

The public consultation on the route corridor options will continue at galwaytoathlonecycleway.com until March 1, and bookings for phone or virtual meetings can be made through the website.

"As soon as we can meet landowners face-to-face we will, but that's out of our hands at the minute," said Mr Kelly.

The preferred route corridor for the project is expected to be decided by the middle of this year.