New River Corrib pedestrian and cycle bridge to open in Galway city next year

A new pedestrian and cycle bridge across the River Corrib, opposite the Cathedral in Galway city, was installed early on Monday and will open next summer.

It runs on the city side and parallel to the existing Salmon Weir Bridge, the main crossing of the river. At 85m in length, it crosses two other watercourses, Persse’s Distillery river and Friar’s river canal. It is situated 24m downstream from the existing bridge and is expected to draw away some of the 9,000 pedestrians and cyclists who use the 200-year-old Salmon Weir Bridge every day.

The hope is that the bridge will reduces collisions between vehicles and pedestrians/cyclists on the Salmon Weir Bridge.

The new bridge, currently known as the Salmon Weir Pedestrian and Cycle Bridge, may also be given a different name, a Galway City Council spokeswoman said.

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It will play a key role in the development of a more sustainable transport policy in the city and aims to reduce dependency on cars, in line with national transport and planning policies.

The Salmon Weir Bridge is the main artery connecting the University of Galway and University College Hospital Galway to the city centre.

Galway City Council secured co-funding for the bridge under the European Regional Development Fund, with matched funding from the National Transport Authority through the Northern and Western Regional Assembly.