Laois gets only €50,000 in €67 million greenway fund
Trnasport Minister Darragh O'Brien at a photoshoot announcing the funding on 5 March
LAOIS will get only €50,000 from a national €67 million fund for greenways and active travel infrastructure this year.
The county came joint-last of 27 local authorities nationwide, when funding for greenways and national roads active travel infrastructure through Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) was announced on 5 March.
The small local slice of funding will go towards new development works on a greenway from Abbeyleix to Portlaoise.
The county councils in Laois and Longford were granted just €50,000 each from the 2025 fund, compared with €855,000 for Offaly and a whopping €4.2 million for Kildare.
Nevertheless, the grant was welcomed by Laois Fianna Fáil TD Seán Fleming, who said it would support the development of ‘high-quality walking and cycling facilities’ on the local greenway.
He also commented that the funding ‘confirms the government’s continued commitment to safe, sustainable and healthy greenway projects throughout the country’.
In a statement, Deputy Fleming said: ‘I am looking forward to Laois County Council working on this greenway with local communities, so this facility can be in place as soon as possible. I look forward to many people using these facilities and amenities in the future.’
Laois got €4.2m from the fund last year, which included €50,000 for the early planning stages of the Abbeyleix-Portlaoise greenway.
