Kilbeggan greenway survey notice issued

The council have issued a tender notice for an aerial imagery and LiDAR survey of a proposed Mullingar to Kilbeggan greenway. The survey is required to “provide the background information to design and develop the project,” according to a council notice.

It follows an initial announcement of funding for the greenway made last July when consultants were also appointed. The cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council, Cllr Liam McDaniel, who is from the Kilbeggan area, said the greenway would be transformative for the town.

“It’s more than positive,” he said. “To me, a greenway linking Kilbeggan to Mullingar is like the final piece to the jigsaw puzzle – it joins everything up.

“We probably have the best greenway system in the country as it is if you look at the Royal Canal Greenway, which goes all the way east to Dublin, and then the Old Rail Trail which connects Mullingar to Athlone.

“Now we will have Kilbeggan to Mullingar too and it is absolutely wonderful.”

Cllr McDaniel said the project comes with huge potential for tourism. “It could be transformative for tourism in Kilbeggan as we already have the distillery, which is an excellent attraction,” he said.

“Also, if people know they have this greenway that connects east, west, or wherever they want to go – they can use Kilbeggan as a base to do that.

“I’m really looking forward to this greenway link.”

The exact route of the new greenway is still under consideration, but current plans suggest it will connect the Royal Canal outside Mullingar to the Kilbeggan branch of the Grand Canal.

Cllr McDaniel said an exact route is still to be decided. “I’m not sure what route they are going to take yet,” he said.

“If you look at the map, they’re probably thinking about a route going down by Lilliput and Lough Ennell.

“It might go through places on the way to Kilbeggan like Ballinagore and the likes, which could give other areas a real boost too.”

Westmeath County Council said the proposed amenity will be “a recreational trail, providing tourists, commuters and leisure users with a dedicated corridor linking the two towns”. They also said the project would be a “purposeful recreational facility for use by cyclists, walkers and other dedicated users”.

The contract will be awarded for surveys by March 25, and there are two months to complete the task.