Funding boost for Greenways

The funding of £200,000 has been provided under Stage 3 of the ‘Small Grants Programme for Greenways’ to develop eight new Greenway schemes across Northern Ireland.

The programme will award £25,000 for the development of detailed designs for each project proposal across four council areas including Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon.

There are four schemes in the ABC council area including a 14km greenway from Portadown to Moy and 29km of greenway from Portadown to Scarva.

The proposed Portadown and Moy Greenway will use the old Great Northern Railway (GNR) route, identified on the strategic greenway route map as part of the primary network. Whilst the Portadown to Caledon via Armagh greenway aims to create 29km of new greenway which will also use the old Great Northern Railway Ireland.

Andrew Grieve from the Department for Infrastructure said: “This funding will help more Councils to develop Greenway projects that align with that plan and we look forward to seeing their proposals move towards fruition.”

Mary Black, Assistant Director for Health Improvement at the Public Health Agency added: “We are delighted to be working with the Department for Infrastructure to support Greenway development as the Greenways provide opportunities for children and adults to incorporate walking and cycling into their everyday lives, whether for active travel, recreation or health.

“As many adults and children are not taking the recommended amounts of physical activity, enhancing the infrastructure to help everyone get more active is a positive step.

“Being physically active can help prevent a number of serious health conditions and can cut your risk of heart disease and some cancers, as well as reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes, stroke and joint pain.

“It also helps to boost mood and reduce depression and anxiety.”