South Kerry Greenway costs balloon to more than €70m

Initial preliminary projections for the greenway were estimated at under €5m in 2014

The first 3.1km section of the South Kerry Greenway from Golden's Shop, Kells, to the Old Railway Station at Kells. It became accessible to pedestrians and cyclists last December. Picture: Valerie O'Sullivan

The estimated cost of the South Kerry Greenway along a section of the Ring of Kerry is now over €70m, Kerry County Council has confirmed.

To date, almost €22m - in excess of the 2019 estimate for completion of the entire route - has been allocated by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the Department of Transport. However, a quarter of the route, just 7km, will have opened by Easter weekend.

Initial preliminary projections for a 32km greenway along the old rail line from Glenbeigh to Renard outside Caherciveen were estimated at under €5m, with the project to be completed by 2016. That was later revised to 27km.

The greenway along the old rail line was announced in 2014 by then environment minister Alan Kelly on top of the 19th-century 11-span viaduct leading to Kells, which is around 22m high.

When the full extent of what was involved was properly realised, the figures in 2019 went to €20.

With less than a quarter of the now 27km greenway complete, some of the most challenging sections lie ahead, according to a report received by independent councillor Jackie Healy-Rae. The projected cost is now €72m, the council said in the report.

The council has defended the project on the grounds of economic return. 

“The route for this greenway contains many structures and requires significant platform reconstruction particularly between Mountain Stage and Kells. The topography over which the greenway is being built is very challenging to construct, but will result in an exceptional greenway user experience," it said.

A cost-benefit analysis and an economic impact assessment have been carried out on the scheme. The South Kerry Greenway will attract between 232,000 and 428,000 visitors annually with a spend of €20m to €38m, creating between 296 jobs and 542 jobs, the report given to Mr Healy-Rae said.

A council spokesman told the Irish Examiner that a number of factors led to the increase in cost projection.

These include increased construction costs, “which continue to rise in the current geopolitical environment."

The historic structures at Gleensk and Cahersiveen require specialist rehabilitation works with extensive temporary works for access, the spokesman said.

There is also “very challenging terrain, including around 1km of gabion walling along Mountain Stage, as well as mitigation works arising from the environmental impact assessment".

Land acquisition costs under compulsory purchase orders (CPO) are also a factor, and fewer than half the landowners have been paid.

The greenway is being built piecemeal, mostly along the old Great Southern and Western Railway Line from Farranfore, which opened in 1890 and closed in 1960. Some 133 landowners are involved, the council has previously confirmed.

The route has run into opposition in several sections, and legal challenges have been taken. The decision by An Coimisiún Pleanála to move to CPO has been a particular sticking point.

Land acquisition continues, with some cases having had to go to arbitration and with independently agreed payments.

Meanwhile, the ambition is to have the greenway fully open by 2030, the council spokesman said.

The first section, a 3km section between Kells Station to Goldens, opened before Christmas. A 4km Glenbeigh Trailhead southwards will open at Easter.

A second 2km part of this section towards Mountain Stage will be open this summer.

“We now have clarity from the council that the South Kerry Greenway is projected to cost €72m. This is a very significant level of public investment, and with that comes a responsibility to ensure the project is delivered efficiently, transparently, and with full respect for those directly impacted,” Mr Healy-Rae said.

He said that significant concerns remain, particularly in relation to landowner engagement.

What was most worrying is the confirmation that fewer than half of the affected landowners have been paid to date, he said.

Separately, the Irish Examiner has learned that the cost of maintaining the paved structure, including providing car parks and toilet facilities, will be the responsibility of Kerry County Council. Local authorities across the country are asking the Department of Transport for separate funding streams for maintaining the off-road facilities.

- Funded by the Local Democracy Scheme