The first anniversary of the vote to cancel the trial Salthill cycleway was marked at the Ardilaun Hotel this week when a protest was held at the meeeting of Galway City Council.
Representatives of the Galway Cycling Campaign gathered to mark a full year since the council voted to cancel the trial Salthill Prom cycleway. No progress on a cycling route through Salthill to Barna has happened since.
In 2017 there was a design for the route from Galway to Barna. Six months ago the council asked Arup to assess that plan and see whether it was still feasible. The conclusion was that the 2017 plan would be vey challenging to implement because of changes to the regulations since it was drawn up The 2017 also did not include the environmental assessments which may throw up other issues.
At the meeting Cllr Niall Murphy, of the Green Party, raised the matter in order to establish what the next steps are for a Greenway from the city through Salthill to Barna.
Uinsinn Finn, senior engineer, told the meeting that the Galway Transport Strategy (GTS ) will be reviewed this year and the priority for this greenway will be established as part of that review.
Cllr Murphy is cautiously hopeful of progress, he told the Advertiser afterwards.
“Some parts between Silver Strand and Barna are problematic in terms of environmental issues and land ownership. There is also a balance between an amenity cycle which will attract tourists and a commuting route which will maximise the shift from cars to bikes.
“A route which is more inland than the original coastal route may be necessary in some parts, though less attractive to the leisure cyclist.
“But the real challenge is that the review of the GTS will have a lot on its plate. The process of reviewing the various GTS bus and bike routes may leave limited time to properly assess the Galway to Barna route.
“It is also vital that we can connect the city to Knocknacarra, without waiting for a route all the way to Barna. We councillors and the public will need to make sure that this route gets adequate attention during the GTS review process. Otherwise it will be seen as the Greenway through Salthill being kicked down the road yet again,” he concluded.
