Fermoy viaduct plan gets the go-ahead
Avondhu Blackwater Partnership has been granted planning permission to convert the disused Carrigabrick Viaduct into a pedestrian walkway and viewing platform.
The Avondhu Blackwater Partnership initiative, which will see the protected structure developed so that it can once more be enjoyed by the public, has been in the works for the past two years, and has been tirelessly championed by CEO Valerie Murphy.
She's pleased by the County Council’s decision to grant planning permission: “We’re very excited by this long-awaited development. It will benefit not only the people of Fermoy, but those of the wider hinterland, and will prove to be a legacy project for future generations to enjoy.”
The first phase of the plan, designed by Avondhu Blackwater’s international award-winning landscape architect Cathal O’Meara, will open the Viaduct from the Rathealy Road side, creating a spur of the Avondhu Way. It is intended that this spur will become part of the European E8 Long-Distance Path, a walking route that stretches from Romania to Cork.
That phase will include the repair and repainting of existing railings, the addition of new guard railings, the placing of entry gates and seating, and new path surfacing.
Avondhu Blackwater Partnership’s original idea to develop the Viaduct was borne out of a period of consultation with the public and with community representatives, and out of a desire to facilitate any works that would fulfil the local development company’s mission to promote rural development and stimulate local tourism and heritage.
The Viaduct – known locally as the Red Bridge – was built in 1872 as part of the railway between Fermoy and Lismore. It was last used as a rail bridge in 1967, prior to the closure of the Fermoy/Waterford rail line. It has been famously immortalised on film, featured in the 1966 war drama 'The Blue Max'.
Published:
Thursday 10th April 6:33pm
