Major 'bog trail' greenways plan for Bord na Móna land

Some €30m of Just Transition funding has been earmarked for a network of connected walking and cycling trails on Bord na Móna land in Offaly and across the Midlands.

Details of the major tourism project, which would include more than 70km of possible trails across the region, were outlined in tender documents published on behalf of Bord na Móna earlier this week.

The company is advertising for consultancy services in an effort to help deliver what's billed as the €30m Midlands Trail Network.

This is due to be put in place "predominantly on Bord na Móna lands that were formerly used for peat extraction" and looks set to incorporate the former narrow gauge rail track beds and to involve "the re-imagining of industrial bridges formerly used to transport peat to factories".

It's also intended to create "thematic experiences; place-making and art installations; signage and interpretation to create a sense of connectivity across the towns and villages, bogs and waterways of the Just Transition Fund region."

Car parking facilities are also due to be developed as part of the delivery of the trail network. Location details for the specific trails in Offaly and elsewhere were not included in the tender documents published by Bord na Móna, but it said "consultation with local authorities, data collection and trail audits" had been carried out as part of the preliminary route selection phase of the project.

It said "over 100km of possible trails were examined" as part of the project, but some "unviable route options" had been "screened out" due to possible ecological impacts, flood risk, accessibility, cost, and other factors.

It added that the project "is currently at the Design and Environmental Evaluation stage" and that "planning applications will be lodged to the relevant local authorities" later this year.

"For planning permission purposes, it is envisaged that the proposed development will comprise of six core trails across five counties in the EU Just Transition Fund region," it was added.

The Just Transition region takes in the counties of Laois, Offaly, Westmeath, Longford, Roscommon, and parts of Kildare, Tipperary and East Galway.