Access points to Royal Canal in Dublin 15 expected to be fixed as part of greenway project

Fingal County Council now expects to submit a planning application for the wider greenway to An Bord Pleanála in Q3 2025.

IrishCycle.com outlined to the council that local residents had complained about the suboptimal, unfinished access point to the canal towpath near Hansfield Train Station. The accumulation of glass on the path and not being able to get anybody to clean it has meant some residents view part of the path as having become a no-man’s-land, where nobody is responsible for maintenance.

A spokesperson for the council said: “It is Fingal County Council policy to provide pedestrian and cycle links to the Royal Canal at Hansfield allowing access to the environs of the Royal Canal and improved connectivity to Clonsilla and Hansfield Train Stations.”

“This has been achieved through the development process both in terms of private residential developments and Fingal County Council’s development of the Royal Canal Urban Greenway,” the council said.

A spokesperson said: “A cycle link from Hansfield Train Station to the Royal Canal is now open. Fingal County Council is currently engaging with the private residential developments in providing a link between developments to existing constructed cycle tracks within these developments from Hansfield to Clonsilla Train Station and improve the general connectivity in the area.”

The spokesperson added: “Following completion of the preliminary design for the Royal Canal Urban Greenway, all the required documents including the Environmental Impact Assessment Report will be prepared for a planning application to An Bord Pleanála which is expected to be in Q3 2025.”