The new Royal Canal Greenway, Ashtown to Castleknock, has been officially opened by Tánaiste Joan Burton and Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar.

The project is a dedicated cycle and walking route Greenway, located along the Royal Canal towpath and is also part of the wider Dublin to Galway cycle route.

The initiative is based in a sensitive ecological area within Dublin; the canal corridor is a designated proposed Natural Heritage Area, while the environmental, ecological and industrial heritage sensitivities of the site provided significant challenges for the development of the project's design.

Bespoke design features for the scheme were developed in consultation with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and Fingal County Council Conservation Department to minimise the impact the scheme would have on bats in particular. In addition, a bespoke lighting system was developed incorporating automatic dimming and remote monitoring technology so that natural environmental conditions could be maintained at dawn and dusk when bats are most active and feeding along the canal corridor.

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Darragh Malone, Atkins Project Manager, said: "This is a very exciting project for Atkins to be involved with. The overall vision from the NTA and Fingal County Council will ensure that the Greenway will be a major asset for outdoor recreation and tourism in Ireland while also providing a real 'traffic-free' alternative for commuter cyclists travelling between Dublin City Centre and the Blanchardstown/Castleknock areas."

Tony Mortimer, Director for Highways and Transportation Atkins, added: "The Greenway is a very important addition to the locality, which will bring people into a vastly improved environment and closer to the natural features in the area.

"The scheme will eventually link to the greater Greenway running from Dublin city centre out to Leixlip and eventually to Galway and will serve as a leisure and commuter facility for cyclists and pedestrians."

Funding for the project has been provided by the National Transport Authority.

Photo (L-R): Darragh Malone project manager Atkins, Tánaiste Joan Burton, Mags Murray Mayor of Fingal, Minister Leo Varadkar, Paul Reid Chief Executive of Fingal County Council and Tom O'Malley managing director Atkins.

(JP/MH)