A multi-million pound greenway through Armagh – linking Caledon and Portadown – has taken a major step forward.
Funding has now been provided to create a plan for the scheme, which follows the successful completion of greenways at Monaghan.
Cross-border greenways are also now linking Newry and Carlingford.
Now the Caledon to Portadown greenway has been awarded £25,000 to put together the detailed design.
It is one of eight which have been given financial backing from stage 3 of the ‘Small Grants Programme for Greenways’.
And four of those actually cross the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area.
The eight successful greenway proposal projects are Craigavon to Aghagallon, Portadown to Caledon (via Armagh), Portadown to Moy, and Banbridge to Scarva.
The other four – all of which receive £25,000 for design plans – are Downpatrick to Newcastle, Downpatick to Comber, Doagh to Larne, and Ballymoney to Ballycastle
The Department for Infrastructure and the Public Health Agency announced the funding of £200,000 to develop the plans.
Andrew Grieve, from the Department for Infrastructure, said: “Exercise – Explore – Enjoy: a Strategic Plan for Greenways, sets out the Department’s ambition for the creation of a 1,000km network across Northern Ireland.
“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.”
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