€200k revamp for Royal Canal at Newbrook Bridge

A complete revamp for the Royal Canal around the Newbrook Bridge is planned from a €200,000 grant announced this month.

In a move intended to make it easier to access the water with canoes or paddle boats, a slipway and pontoon are to be installed, and storage and changing facilities provided alongside them, together with enhanced car parking facilities.

In addition, the northern side of the canal towpath from Newbrook Bridge to Kilpatrick Bridge is to be surfaced.

The funding is coming from Measure 2 of the 2018 Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme, part of the government’s Action Plan for Rural Development, Deputy Peter Burke said as he detailed the plans in place for the area.

“The project will see the development of a slipway and pontoon for launching boats and canoes into the canal, and enable the development of water-based recreation, for example canoeing,” he said.

The structures are to go in place in the small ‘dead end’ portion of canal in front of The Moorings, and the existing car park there is earmarked for upgrade, and pinpointed as the location for the storage and changing building.

“The new space will have safe access and will be suitable for novice paddlers to learn in a safe environment,” said Deputy Burke.

“This will allow visitors and locals alike – who may not have any experience on the water – to have an enjoyable experience just on the outskirts of our economic centre.”

He said it represented a tremendous boost for an area just inside the C-Link and accessible with ease from so many locations.

“The new development will be a great visual sight as you enter the town from the Ballymahon Road and further develops this side of Mullingar – along with the revamp of Blackhall announced last November.”

Deputy Burke said that there is a lot of largely unused green space alongside the canal in that area, and his hope was that in a further phase, that too can be enhanced for amenity and recreational use.

“My colleague Andrew Duncan has called on the council to develop this area and has kept the pressure on for resources to be allocated. I lobbied Minister Michael Ring heavily on this issue and was delighted when he took my points on board and allocated significant funding to begin works on the site,” he stated.

Deputy Burke said that users of the Royal Canal will also benefit from works announced for Longford under the same scheme: “There are to be links from the Royal Canal to Keenagh, to Lanesboro and to Newcastle Wood,” he stated.

Newcastle Wood is just beyond the Westmeath County Boundary, and is where Center Parcs is going.

“It will encompass a trail from the Royal Canal east of the N55 at Kilcurry through about 300m of farmland then running for roughly 1km along the Inny. It will link up with the central walking/cycling route through Newcastle Forest, taking users back to the amenity area at Newcastle Bridge,” stated Deputy Burke, adding that €200,000 has been allocated for this project.

The funding for Newbrook is one of two allocations announced for Westmeath, the second being €52,000 for Moate’s Dún na Sí Amenity Park to go towards the general upkeep of the park, fencing, lighting and electrical supply.

“The park received €26,000 in funding from Michael Ring’s department last month which is a further boost for tourism in the Moate area,” said Deputy Burke.

He continued: “Recreational tourism is a growing part of Ireland’s tourism offering, and we have seen an increase in the number of Irish and overseas visitors enjoying the many greenways, blueways and walking trails which have been developed around the country in recent years.

“This is generating income for rural areas and helping to create more jobs in the hospitality and leisure sectors here in Westmeath.

“These types of schemes and announcements for Westmeath ensure we will not be left behind and will be able to take full advantage of tourists visiting our shores.

“Figures available from Fáilte Ireland reveal that in 2017, 26% of all overseas tourists engaged in some level of hiking or cross-country walking. This equates to 2.3 million tourists, spending an estimated €1.3bn during their stay in Ireland.

A further 451,000 overseas tourists took part in cycling activities.

“Our local communities here in Westmeath are also using these facilities in large number – you only have to look at the greenway on a Saturday or Sunday, which is busy with families and their pets walking and cycling. The continued development of our recreational infrastructure will not only support our developing rural tourism industry, but will also provide better recreation options for local people and families for their own enjoyment of the countryside.

“I want to congratulate Westmeath County Council and Dun na Sí Park and the communities who have worked together to bring forward the projects funded under the scheme in the last two years.”