Ireland’s greenways are at risk of becoming “very expensive ghostways” because too many of them have been developed, the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) has claimed.

However, this assertion was rejected by the Department of Transport.

The farm body pointed out that over €1m a day is being spent on the provision of new greenways, walkways and cycle paths or what the Department of Transport terms active travel programmes.

The incoming Government will have to review the current level of spending on greenways, the INHFA maintained, and decide if they represent the best possible use of public money.

“There has to be a limit to the number of greenways that are feasible or that the country requires; and are we now getting close to that limit?” INHFA president Vincent Roddy asked.

“The number of people making use of some greenways is extremely small. In fact, the INHFA would argue that they are at risk of becoming ‘ghostways’ there’s so few people on them,” Roddy said.

The INHFA leader stressed that he had no issue with investment in walkways and cycle-paths around large towns.

“These are very good amenities that are of real benefit to communities. We are not opposed to these investments,” Roddy pointed out.

“What we are concerned about is the level of investment in new greenways,” he said.

“Every barony in the country has a greenway, or plans for one, at this stage. To use the old Late Late adage, it’s like there’s one for everybody in the audience,” he added.

“But greenways are contentious developments, and you’d have to question whether they offer good value for money,” Roddy said.

Funding

The INHFA leader asked why close to €70m was being spent on greenways this year, when just €36m was allocated to LEADER funding.

“LEADER has delivered massively for rural communities but it is getting less than half the level of the funding that is being allocated to greenways,” Roddy said.

“You’d have to ask if some of the funding targeted at future greenway projects would be better spent if it were redirected back into local development through LEADER where it could deliver better outcomes for agritourism and the local economy generally,” Roddy asked.

However, a spokesperson for the Department of Transport rejected the assertion that greenways were not value for money, or that the level of usage had dropped off significantly.

“The usage of greenways is dependent on a number of factors including weather, cost and availability of accommodation and the time required for new greenways to become known and established,” the spokesperson said.

“As such, a number of years of monitoring and data gathering will be required before it will be possible to identify usage trends nationally,” he added.

The Department of Transport also pointed out that there were health and well-being benefits to greenways that had to factored into any examination of their overall worth to a local area.