Rail-trail and greenway in Ireland
Map of the
EuroVelo 2 route.
The Dublin–Galway Greenway is a partially completed 'coast-to-coast'
greenway and partial
rail trail , in
Ireland , funded by the
Department of Transport , which is due to become the western section of
EuroVelo
EV2 , a cycle route from
Galway ,
Ireland , crossing Europe and ending in
Moscow ,
Russia .
[2]
[3]
[4] The 276 kilometres (171 mi) route was planned to be completed by 2020.
[3]
[1]
[5] It is due to be the
fourth greenway in Ireland, after the
Great Southern Trail , the
Great Western Greenway and the
Waterford Greenway .
The greenway connects existing pathways, redeveloped railtrails and newly created sections.
The Greenway begins at
Spencer Dock in Dublin City Centre. The section from Sheriff Street to Newcomen Bridge, a completely new section of canal-side route crossing a railway line, was completed in July 2020.
[6] The rest of the route follows the canal towpaths, which are of varying quality and includes the "Deep Sinking" section which is currently inadvisable for amateur cyclists.
[7] Upgrades of the entire length are proposed.
The route then follows the
Royal Canal Way which links
Ashtown, Dublin to Longford along the
Royal Canal .
Upgrade works are planned along the length of this to improve surfaces and access. The official "starting" point for the Greenway is at
Maynooth harbour,
[8] 28 kilometres (17 mi) from the Eastern end of the Greenway; but works are either in planning, under construction or completed along the entire length of the Royal Canal Way.
The Westmeath way stretches 28 kilometres (17 mi)
[9] from the
Meath -
Westmeath border and is proposed to meet to the town of Ballinea, south-west of
Mullingar .
[10]
The section from
Mullingar to
Athlone is a
rail-trail over the disused
Mullingar-Athlone rail line, (with refurbished former stations in
Moate and
Castletown Geoghegan ).
[11]
[12] The Moate-Garrycastle section was officially opened by
Taoiseach
Enda Kenny in October 2015.
[13]
[14]
[11]
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18] Planning permission for a new bridge in
Athlone across the
Shannon was granted in November 2017.
[19]
[20]
[21]
[3]
[1]
[22]
[23] Funding for this bridge and the section from Garrycastle into Athlone was announced in August 2018,
[24] and the bridge was opened in August 2023.
[25]
[26] Rail traffic through Athlone was suspended during the
Easter weekend in 2019, to allow for the construction of an underpass for the greenway below the
Dublin Heuston -
Galway rail line.
[27] In September 2015 the
Westmeath Independent reported that the greenway could provide a "€15m boost" to the local economy.
[28] A section from the white-gates level crossing to the Athlone Marina opened in October 2021.
[29]
[30]
In September 2022, funding became available from
Westmeath County Council to convert the old
Streamstown railway station on the trail to a café.
[31]
A community development organisation in
Kilbeggan ,
County Westmeath plans to connect the Greenway to the
Offaly Cycleways at Kilbeggan with a greenway to
Tullamore ,
County Offaly .
[32]
The planning of this route via
Ballinasloe (as part of
Ireland's Hidden Heartlands )
[33] by the
National Roads Authority was requested by
Galway County Council in June 2014 and was in the planning stage in July 2015.
[3]
[34]
[35]
[36]
[17]
[37]
[38] There was opposition from multiple stakeholders: the Galway Cycling Campaign objected to the proposal to place the route , the "Galway to Athlone Cycleway", near to the
N6
national primary road .
Teachta Dála for
Galway East ,
Ciarán Cannon stated in September 2015 that significant numbers of local landowners also expressed concern about the preferred route.
[39]
[40] In October 2015
Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport
Paschal Donohoe announced the withdrawal of funding for the section until the concerns of local landowners had been resolved.
[41]
In January 2017, Minister
Shane Ross announced a new consultation process, and 55 submissions were received by February.
[42]
[43] In 2018 this section was still in the planning phase, with funding secure from
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
[44]
[45] A public project office was planned in early 2019.
[46] By July 2019 a preferred route following the rail line to
Monksland , turning southwards through
Crannagh More , by the
River Shannon opposite
Clonmacnoise , west towards
Moore , crossing the
R357 north of
Shannonbridge , crossing the
River Suck , and taking the
disused Grand-Canal branch to
Ballinasloe , before passing through
Loughrea ,
Clarinbridge and
Oranmore before going into
Galway city , was published.
[47] Funding was allocated to
Galway County Council in December 2019.
[48]
Public consultation on five potential Athlone–Galway routes began in January 2021.
[49] In December 2021, the route selection process was completed and the proposed Route 5 was selected as the preferred route to complete the Dublin-Galway Greenway.
[50] The route will pass through
Shannonbridge ,
Ballinasloe ,
Clonfert ,
Meelick ,
Portumna ,
Woodford ,
Gort ,
Coole Park ,
Kinvara ,
Kilcolgan ,
Clarinbridge and
Oranmore , before reaching
Galway city .
[51]
[52]
[53]
[54] Ballinasloe would be connected by a branch from Shannonbridge.
[55]
^
a
b
c Melia, Paul (27 June 2014).
"Wheels in motion for 280km coast-to-coast cycle route" .
Irish Independent . Dublin. Retrieved 6 August 2014 .
^
"Latest section of Dublin-Galway coast-to-coast Greenway opens - Varadkar" .
DTTAS.ie . 27 June 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014 .
^
a
b
c
d
"Local councillors had a chance to check on the progress of the Greenway cycleway project as works reached Moate last week" .
Athlone Advertiser . 18 December 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014 .
^ Kelly, Olivia (12 March 2015).
"Plan unveiled for €10m-plus Royal Canal cycle path" .
Irish Times . Retrieved 14 September 2015 .
^
"Galway to Dublin greenway could be finished in five years" . IrishCycle.com. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014 .
^
"Phase 2 of Royal Canal Greenway Opens" . Dublin Cycling Campaign . 31 July 2020.
Archived from the original on 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020 .
^
"Public urged to support Royal Canal Greenway proposals as opposition mounts in Dublin 15 -" . 19 March 2019.
^
"Route Info" .
Royal Canal Greenway . 2019. Archived from
the original on 30 December 2019.
^
"Royal Canal Greenway map" . Retrieved 8 January 2015 .
^
"Walking on The Royal Canal" .
Waterways Ireland . Archived from
the original on 8 January 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^
a
b
"Midlands Greenway official opening on October 18" .
Westmeath Examiner . 11 October 2015. Archived from
the original on 14 October 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015 .
^
"Work underway at Moate Railway Station" . pagesuite-professional.co.uk .
Athlone Advertiser . 9 July 2015. p. 4. Archived from
the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^ McDermott, Eoghan (18 October 2015).
"Kenny wants national strategy for walks and trails" .
The Irish Times .
Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015 .
^
"Taoiseach to officially open Greenway this Sunday" . 5 October 2015.
Archived from the original on 16 October 2015. Retrieved 16 October 2015 .
^
"Taoiseach to perform official opening of Mullingar to Garrycastle cycleway" .
Shannonside FM . 11 September 2015. Archived from
the original on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 5 October 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^ Cusack, Adrian (26 August 2015).
"Athone to Mullingar Greenway set to open within weeks" . IrishCycle.com. Retrieved 29 August 2015 .
^
a
b
"Countdown is on to opening of Athlone to Mullingar cycleway" .
Westmeath Independent . 18 May 2015.
^
"Welcome to Greenways Westmeath" .
Westmeath County Council . Archived from
the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^ O'Halloran, Marie (7 November 2017).
"Permission granted for new bridge across Shannon in Athlone" .
Irish Times .
^ Grace, Robert (10 December 2015).
"Councillors welcome latest proposed design for Athlone's cycleway bridge" .
Athlone Advertiser .
Archived from the original on 11 December 2015.
^
"Dublin – Galway Greenway" .
Westmeath County Council . Archived from
the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^
"€10m More For Cycleways" . Hospitality Ireland. 15 May 2014. Archived from
the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014 .
^ Daly, Maria (9 October 2014).
"Council confirm plans for new towncentre bridge as part of cycleway" .
Athlone Advertiser . Retrieved 9 October 2014 .
^ Fagan, Ronan (30 August 2018).
"Greenway extension progress boost as funding is announced" .
Athlone Advertiser .
Archived from the original on 30 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018 .
^
Mannion, Teresa (8 August 2023).
" 'Good for tourism': Welcome for Athlone greenway bridge" .
RTÉ News .
^
"Naming of Athlone's new bridge to be considered by councillors" . Westmeath Independent . 23 October 2022.
^ Cusack, Adrian (24 January 2019).
"No train service in Athlone over Easter weekend" .
Westmeath Independent .
Archived from the original on 25 January 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019 .
^ Cusack, Adrian (2 September 2015).
"local greenway could provide '€15m boost' " .
Westmeath Independent .
Archived from the original on 3 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2015 .
^
"New Athlone Greenway To Be Officially Opened Next Month" . Midlands 103 .
^
"Cycleway audiobook puts focus on Abbey Graveyard" .
Westmeath Independent . 20 October 2021.
^
"€33,000 available for Greenway café" . Westmeath Independent . 27 September 2022.
^
"Kilbeggan track could be 'midlands Greenway' " .
Westmeath Examiner . 6 February 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2014 .
^ Corrigan, Stephen (13 August 2019).
"Transition key in move from peat to parkland" .
Connacht Tribune .
Archived from the original on 13 August 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2019 .
^ Nee, Martina (26 June 2014).
"NRA to begin design of Ballinasloe to Galway greenway" .
Galway Advertiser . Retrieved 13 February 2015 .
^ Coleman, Daniel (October 2014).
Route Corridor Selection Report Galway – Dublin Greenway:Ballinasloe to Athlone (PDF) (Report).
National Roads Authority . Archived from
the original (PDF) on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 10 April 2015 .
^
Ballinasloe to Athlone Corridor Overview (PDF) (Map). 1:25000. Cartography by
Ordnance Survey Ireland ,
AECOM , Roughan & O'Donovan. R446 road:
National Roads Authority . 2014. Archived from
the original (pdf) on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 10 April 2015 . {{
cite map }}
: CS1 maint: location (
link )
^ Brett, Ivo (July 2015).
"July Update - Galway Farmers want cyclists pushed onto the N6, Longford woos minister and looks to connect Royal Canal greenway to Mayo" . DublinGalwayGreenway.com. Retrieved 27 August 2015 .
^ Melia, Paul (27 June 2015).
"1,000 landowners hold key to saving Dublin-Galway cycleway" .
Irish Independent . Retrieved 27 August 2015 .
^
"Galway East TD says greenway route proposal is not viable" .
Galway Bay FM . 21 September 2015. Archived from
the original on 28 September 2015 – via
Wayback Machine .
^ McNamara, Denise (6 September 2015).
"Cyclists voice opposition to N6 greenway" .
Connacht Tribune . Retrieved 14 September 2015 .
^
"Plans for section of cycle route put on hold following objections" .
RTÉ News . 30 October 2015.
Archived from the original on 30 October 2015.
^ Fitzgibbon, Amy Nora (19 January 2017).
"Ross 'agrees to proper consultation process' for Galway Greenway" .
Farmers Journal .
Archived from the original on 11 February 2017.
^
"55 submissions received on Galway to Dublin greenway" .
Connacht Tribune . 10 February 2017. Archived from
the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 11 February 2017 .
^ Cunningham, Enda (18 November 2018).
"Minister commits to examine all options on greenway" .
Connacht Tribune .
Archived from the original on 18 November 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2019 .
^
"200 Thousand Euro For Next Phase Of Galway-Athlone Greenway" .
GalwayBayFM.ie . 28 December 2018.
Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2019 .
^
"Senator Calls For Focus On Public Consultation In Bid To Progress Plan For Athlone To Galway Greenway" .
GalwayBayFM.ie . 31 January 2019.
Archived from the original on 31 January 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019 .
^ Verney, Deirdre (30 July 2019).
"Progress on final section of Dublin to Galway greenway" .
Westmeath Examiner .
Archived from the original on 28 August 2019.
^ Kelly, Briain (23 December 2019).
"Galway county allocated €29 million for roads maintenance" . Galway Daily .
Archived from the original on 10 January 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2020 .
^ O'Brien, Tim.
"Public consultation opens over Athlone to Galway greenway route" . The Irish Times .
^ Kelly, Kieran (6 December 2021).
"Dublin – Galway Greenway to pass through Ballinasloe, Portumna, Gort, Kinvara, Clarinbridge and Oranmore" . Greensways Ireland . Retrieved 30 June 2022 .
^
"Athlone to Galway greenway route draws mixed response" .
Connacht Tribune . 9 December 2021. Retrieved 30 June 2022 .
^ Cusack, Adrian (7 December 2021).
"Route corridor chosen for Athlone to Galway cycleway" .
Westmeath Independent . Retrieved 30 June 2022 .
^
"Athlone-Galway cycleway being split into two projects" .
WestmeathIndependent.ie . 11 April 2024.
^ Dolan, Aisling (7 December 2021).
"Ballinasloe is first stop in the West for Galway-Dublin Cycleway – Dolan" .
Fine Gael . Retrieved 30 June 2022 .
^
"Galway to Athlone Greenway: Detailed 'Emerging Preferred Route' " . IrishCycle.com . 27 March 2023.
53°31′16″N 7°19′57″W / 53.5212°N 7.332551°W / 53.5212; -7.332551 (Piper's Boreen, Dublin-Galway Greenway )