Alloway Railway Tunnel awarded £100,000 from the Ian Findlay Path Fund
The Alloway Railway Tunnel (ART)SCIO has been awarded a £100,000 grant from Scottish national walking charity Paths for All’s Ian Findlay Path Fund to upgrade the active travel route running through the tunnel, enabling the local community to walk, wheel or cycle more for their everyday journeys.
Bill McKinlay, Trustee says, “This is a tremendous boost for our project. Initially we were focused on creating a magnificent mural through the Alloway Tunnel, transforming a graffiti covered area to a welcoming attraction. People told us they saw the tunnel as a barrier and would turn back as they found it a dingy, threatening place. However, this new injection of funding means that we can now upgrade the active-travel path. Currently, the tarmac path surface through the tunnel is uneven and prone to puddling of ingress rainwater, and at the sides, rough hardcore and concrete make it unsafe for walkers, wheelers and cyclists. With a new surface, we will create a much safer and more colourful, joyful journey through the tunnel.
“The funding will also improve the drainage at the entrance, and with help from local volunteers, including Ayrshire College Horticulture students and Princes Trust students, we will plant new bulbs, shrubs and trees which will make this part of the path more accessible and welcoming.
“Our project is all about improving the route, and in making the tunnel something to visit rather than avoid, the path will become the key to unlock the path’s potential to create an active-travel link through the 20-minute neighbourhood to community destinations, linking Kincaidston, Alloway and Doonfoot to Ayr town centre.
“The mural will transform the tunnel into a venue for community activities. The path will become far more widely known to the Ayr communities, increasing its use – and in expectation of this we need signposts at all access points to the path and the new funding will help us do that.
We’d like to thank Paths for All’s Ian Findlay Path Fund, supported by Transport Scotland and the Scottish Government, for the opportunity to upgrade the path.
Rosie McKee, Development Officer for the Ian Findlay Path Fund, said:
“Paths for All are delighted to award Alloway Railway Tunnel ARTSCIO £100,000 from the Ian Findlay Path Fund. The upgrades to the former railway tunnel will improve links between the areas of Kincaidston to the north east of Alloway and Doonfoot to the south west. By making the route more accessible to a wider range of users, it provides an opportunity for people to walk, wheel or cycle to local services, bus/rail stations, schools, shops, health care facilities, cafes and greenspaces. Together with the magnificent mural, the path improvements give path users more confidence to use the route for everyday journeys. We wish to pay tribute to the enormous effort by Alloway Railway Tunnel ART SCIO in securing funding for their plans which will breathe new life into a much-loved community asset. We look forward to supporting them over the coming months and will follow their progress with great interest.”
David Manson, Special Projects Officer from Ayrshire Roads Alliance (ARA) said :“Ayrshire Roads Alliance and South Ayrshire Council have a great opportunity to work alongside the ART SCIO to improve an existing, well used active travel route. Designs are underway to improve the existing surface within the tunnel, giving visitors a better place to stand to view the mural. Drainage improvements are also proposed for the eastern entrance to the tunnel, with plans to improve the connections to the active travel path from both Murdoch’s Loan and the Poets Path.
“ARA recognise the benefits this community driven project will bring to both the local community and visitors to the area, by providing a more inviting and exciting attraction, which will also contribute to an increase in active travel throughout the region.”
