Tag Archives: blueway

News

No Funding Yet To Develop ‘Blueway’ From Canal To Fenit

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THE development of a ‘Blueway’ from the canal to Fenit will have to wait as there is currently no funding available.

Cllr. Deirdre Ferris asked for an update on the Tralee Bay and Canal feasibility study for a proposed Blueway and associated water activities, at the meeting of the Tralee Municipal District of Kerry County Council on Tuesday.

The Blueway would be an area where swimming, kayaking and other water activities could take place from the canal to Fenit and beyond, thus creating a further tourism attraction for the greater Tralee area.

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In reply, Council management said they had sought funding approval through the Urban Regeneration Development Fund to begin the process by undertaking an extensive engineering survey of the entire circa 2.5km length of the Canal and prepare designs and a plan to enable its use as a safe and healthy Blueway that achieves blue flag status and provides a dynamic link to Tralee Bay.

Unfortunately, this element of funding was not approved. Currently Transport Infrastructure Ireland are undertaking extensive works to the southern bank, strengthening the canal wall to ensure the stability of that part of the N86 Dingle road.

The Council said they will continue to seek to source funding opportunities to support the development of the Blueway.

News

Cllr Asks Council To Look At Making Canal Safe For Swimming

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A LOCAL councillor has called for the Council to look at making swimming safe again in the canal.

Sinn Féin Cllr Deirdre Ferris was asking for an update on the progress of the feasibility report for the canal in Tralee in the North Kerry Blueway at the online meeting of Tralee Municipal District on Tuesday.

Cllr Ferris said the lock gates make a very good high-water area for sea swimming which is getting more and more popular and also offers an outdoor activity for families and tourists alike.

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In reply the Council said the feasibility study in relation to the development of Blueways in North Kerry was commissioned by NEWKD in 2018.

The first stage was the development of the Tralee–Fenit Blueway which would open up the town centre to Tralee Bay via the proposed Canal Blueway and would enable the town to develop a new range of opportunities in relation to world class adventure tourism and leisure provision.

Kerry County Council has recently sought funding approval through the Urban Regeneration Development Fund to begin this process by undertaking an extensive engineering survey of the entire circa 2.5km length of the Canal and prepare designs and a plan to enable its use as a safe and healthy Blueway that achieves Blue Flag Status and provides a dynamic link to Tralee Bay.

The various elements of the extension of the Blue Way northwards beyond Tralee Bay will be considered subsequently.

In relation to swimming, a consistent high-water quality for bathing purposes would be required prior to promoting the area as a bathing location.

On previous occasions when the Canal has been used for a bathing event it had been necessary to flush the canal prior to the event.

This involves opening the Lock Gates at specific times. The Council said this would not be feasible for continuous use for bathing purposes. A sampling regime will be put in in place to determine the suitability of the water for bathing over the coming months.

News

Cllr Wants To See Progress On ‘Blueway’ From Tralee To Fenit

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A TRALEE Municipal Councillor has expressed her frustration at the lack of progress on a proposed ‘Blueway’ from Tralee to Fenit, which would transform tourism in the area.

Speaking at the Tralee MD meeting on Monday, Sinn Féin Cllr Deirdre Ferris said a local businessman put forward his submission to the Council over two and a half years ago to establish the ‘Blueway’ from Tralee Bay to Fenit, which would tie in with the Tralee to Fenit Greenway.

The blueway would be an area where swimming, kayaking and other water activities could take place from the canal to Fenit and beyond.

However, nothing has been done to move the project along and she asked the Council to clarify their position on it and what has been done to establish a source of funding for the proposal.

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Cllr Ferris said this project is a prime example on how they can further adventure tourism in north Kerry, which she said has always been the poor cousin of south Kerry when it came to the promotion of tourism in the county.

In reply, the Council said they have recently sought funding approval through the Urban Regeneration Development Fund to begin this process by undertaking an extensive engineering survey of the entire circa 2.5km length of the Canal and prepare designs and a plan to enable its use as a safe and healthy Blueway that achieves blue flag status and provides a dynamic link to Tralee Bay.

Tralee Municipal District Manager Michael Scannell said there are significant structural issues in relation to the canal and a detailed survey of the canal was required. He said it was dredged a number of years ago but has since re-silted over.

He said there is significant investment needed to bring the canal up to the standard required to host such water activities associated with the Blueway.

News

Ferris Wants Council To Start Advertising Local ‘Blueway’ Now

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A COUNCILLOR has asked Kerry County Council to start advertising the fact that there is a ‘Blueway’ from Tralee to Fenit and Ballyheigue.

Cllr Toireasa Ferris brought up the blueway — which would be an area where swimming, kayaking and other water activities could take place from the canal to Fenit and beyond — at the meeting of Tralee Municipal District on Monday.

She said there is very little investment required for a blueway and the Council should start advertising the fact that it is there now. She said the lock gates are now operational and they should be encouraging far more activities in the canal.

The Sinn Fein councillor said they should be contacting all businesses involved in water activity and asking them to consider running kayaking to Fenit, organising swimming events and other events for the summer.

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The eventual plan is for the blueway to link up with the Tralee-Fenit Greenway project to provide a unique attraction for locals and tourists alike.

“All the infrastructure is there, it’s just a matter of PR and signage. When the greenway comes to Fenit we will have a product that nowhere else in the country has,” said Cllr Ferris. She feared that some other part of the country would establish one first and get an advantage on Tralee and north Kerry.

Council management said a feasibility study for the development of blueways in North Kerry has been included in the Kerry Tourism Strategy.

They said progress has been made and the study will be completed and launched in the summer. Funding for their development will then be sought through various funding schemes.