The towpaths of the Caledonian Canal which runs between Inverness and Fort William are getting a £1million investment – the biggest path project ever undertaken on the waterway.
The works will improve more than 12miles of towpath along the canal, which forms a key part of the Great Glen Way Walking Route and the National Cycling Network.
The project is part of a larger £3.4million Scotland-wide scheme to improve the towpath network, which already attracts around 22 million visits per year from runners and commuting cyclists to daily dog walkers.
The project being undertaken by Scottish Canals and funded by its partners Sustrans Scotland, SITA and the Scottish Government’s Future Transport Fund, will deliver the Dochgarroch Loop, a circular route between Inverness’s Tomnahurich Bridge and Dochgarroch, improved towpaths between Inverness and Fort William, and at the gateway to the canal at Muirtown Basin, Inverness.
The works will also mark a major step towards the completion of the Caledonia Way cycle route, which will eventually link Campbeltown in Argyll to Inverness along an epic 228-mile pathway.
Richard Millar, director of heritage, enterprise and sustainability at Scottish Canals, said: “The towpaths of Scotland’s canals are busier than ever and play a vital role in the communities they run through. They’re increasingly significant destinations for leisure, exercise and commuting and this project will open up access to them and provide a safe, all-weather surface everyone can use and enjoy.
“From the iconic locks of Neptune’s Staircase to the majesty of Loch Ness and the breathtaking scenery of the Great Glen, the Caledonian Canal has no shortage of incredible destinations to visit and the towpaths offer the perfect routes to explore all it has to offer. The paths also sit at the heart of many of the Highlands’ rural communities and provide safe, traffic-free links that are a vital resource for the people of those towns and villages.”
John Lauder, national director of Sustrans Scotland, said: “In Scotland we have an action plan with a vision for 10% of trips to be made by bike by 2020. We were delighted to contribute Community Links funding towards upgrading the towpaths along the Caledonian Canal as we think that this greatly help towards achieving this vision. The towpaths provide a great facility for short everyday trips such as commuting to work, getting to and from the shops, and going to school.”
The Caledonian is the largest of the Scottish canals, linking lochs Oich, Ness, Lochy and Dochfour over a distance of 60 miles along the line of the awe-inspiring Great Glen.