— Monasteries of the Moy Greenway expected to eventually link to Great Western Greenway and Ceide Coast Greenway, says local TD.
Construction on a €200,000 extension of the Monasteries of the Moy Greenway between Ballina and Killala in Co Mayo started recently and is expected to opened next year.
The current greenway and local road between Ballina and Killala is part of the Europeen EuroVelo 1 Atlantic Coast Route. The Great Western Greenway between Mulranny and Westport is part of the same route, but most of the EuroVelo 1 route in Mayo and the rest of Ireland is currently on-road with at most route signs.
At present, there are sections of greenway near Ballina and Killala with a narrow local road between them. The local road is usually often but it has some steep hills and combined with blind bends, and gets busier with tourist and farming traffic in the summer months.
Local Cllr Mark Duffy (independent) told IrishCycle.com that the extension to the Ballina to Killala route would add an extra 1km from Belleek Woods closer to Rosserk Abbey, and should be finished by the middle of 2022.
Cllr Duffy said: “It’s another positive step for Ballina and North Mayo in creating a sustainable transport route and building connectivity between different rural communities while also furthering our tourism offering building further connectivity between historical monuments.
Local TD Dara Calleary (Fianna Fáil) said that he hopes that the greenway will eventually link to a network of routes in Mayo and beyond.
Deputy Calleary said: “I’m delighted to see this moving and would like to pay tribute to all involved in progressing it. The Monasteries of the Moy greenway will be a particularly special one in its own right given the history of Belleek, Moyne and Rosserk. However, eventually, I see it linking up to the proposed Ceide Coast Greenway which in turn could link with the proposed Great Western Greenway.
He added: “Meanwhile there are early stage proposals for a Greenway from Ballina to Enniscrone. That network if completed would definitely be one of the most scenically stunning in the country and if properly developed one of the most sustainable.”
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