Connacht Tribune
Campaigners take to old rail track to show support for greenway
More than 600 walkers and joggers turned out in Tuam in a virtual show of defiance to display their support for a greenway through the North Galway town.
The organisers of the recent walk said that they were overwhelmed with the huge numbers that turned out and it was an indication of the level of support that there was in Tuam for a greenway along the railway track to Athenry.
Indeed, there were many present on the walk who expressed surprise that there were so many politicians in Galway against the proposal for a greenway along the old Western Rail Corridor, which closed down forty years ago but is still in the ownership of Irish Rail.
The campaigners for the greenway in North Galway suffered a setback earlier this year when members of Galway County Council voted against the seeking of funding for a feasibility study for a walking and cycling route from Athenry to Tuam and possibly northwards towards Milltown.
Among the 600-plus walkers last Sunday were representatives from Athenry, Tuam and Milltown who are also supportive of the greenway and are hoping that another motion regarding a feasibility study on the route, which will be discussed at a Council meeting in September, will be successful.
One of the organisers of last weekend’s walk was Cllr Shaun Cunniffe said that he was overwhelmed by the response and particularly as many of those who took part were openly vocal about the need for a walking and cycling greenway.
“In all my years of organising events, this stands out as being one of the best supported. I just shows the demand there is out there for such a facility”, he said. Fellow councillors like Cllr Donagh Killilea, Cllr Karey McHugh and Cllr Pete Roche also took to the roads in support of the initiative.
But the support from the local business community was phenomenal. Local restaurants and shops provided food and refreshments for all of those who took part in the event and they too expressed a need for such a facility to boost trade for the town.
And those who are campaigning for the restoration of the Ballyglunin Railway Station, which is located on the rail track for the proposed greenway, have also came out in support of the plan as they feel that it would open up the station to a “new tourist interest”.
A recent survey on greenways revealed that those who are in favour of them want them on public owned property (thereby eliminating the need for compulsory purchase orders to become an issue), to be relatively flat so that they are conducive for families and that they go through largely populated areas like towns.
“The Tuam to Athenry greenway proposal fits all those criteria,” Cllr Cunniffe added and said that the business community in both towns along with sporting and leisure clubs are now fully behind the project. He said that the turnout last Sunday was testimony to this.
“When I turned up first at the railway station in Tuam there were around 150 people and I was delighted at that. But within the next half hour there were droves coming towards us. It was like a county final in Tuam Stadium.
“We have received knockbacks in our campaign but this gave us the inspiration to keep up the momentum. The support we received was mind blowing and those in attendance could not believe why it was not a runner.
“I had to explain to some that if Irish Rail wanted to reopen the railway track for trains in the future, then this could be done in tandem with the greenway as both could run side by side. Many people did not realise this,” Cllr Cunniffe added.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
