Bray to Greystones Cliff Walk to be closed for another three years

Sarah Slater

The Bray to Greystones Cliff Walk will be closed for up to another three years, Wicklow County Council has said.

The 7km long scenic trail with views of the Irish Sea has been closed to tourists and locals for five years next month due to multiple landslides, which have made sections of the route unstable.

The walk is 100ft above sea level and takes in views of Bray Head, Killiney Hill, Dalkey Island, Lambay Island and the Dublin to Rosslare rail line.

The lengthy closure has drawn criticism from locals due to what was signalled as a temporary shut down of the walk now running into its fifth year.

Campaigners and locals argue the council has not been proactive enough about reopening the route.

Friends of the Cliff Walk are local activists that began clearing overgrowth from the Greystones end more than a year ago. However, the council stressed that this overgrowth had been purposefully allowed to happen to deter people from using the closed path.

Tánaiste Simon Harris previously said that he shares the frustration of locals due to the ongoing closure of the walk and is “deeply unhappy” about the matter.

A report released last year showed that the economic impact of the closure is estimated to be costing the national economy €50,000 per day and that the locally around €14 million has been lost by businesses

However, the latest report presented to the council last Wednesday outlined the possibility of the walk being closed for another 36 months.

The Bray to Greystones Cliff Walk Management Committee including the council met this week to discuss finding from RPS Consultants Ltd, a consulting and engineering experts.

The presentation focused on the findings and summary of the report, proposed next steps, potential environmental screening requirements, the planning consent requirements, challenges and constraints and estimated timeline for delivery.

In a statement the council said that “potentially the conservative timeline” for undertaking the necessary steps to reopen the walk is “36 months”.

The council pointed out in the statement that Bray Head is designated as a Special Area of Conversation (SAC) and as such any plan or project is subject to screening for Appropriate Assessment under the EU Habitats Directive.

“This process aims to protect Europe’s most valuable and threatened species and habitats,” the council outlined.

RPS Ltd has undertaken preliminary assessments of the proposal to carry out works on the Bray to Greystones Cliff Walk and has determined that such works may have a significant effect on the SAC and “therefore extensive environmental surveys will be required under EU and national legislation”.

A comprehensive discussion ensued and the members of the Committee expressed their “disappointment and frustration” about the potential timelines outlined and the continued closure of the walk.

Possible alternative engineering solutions were discussed. RPS were requested to examine any options that could possibly reduce the timeline of the project and report to the members at another meeting next month.

Chairperson of the committee, Green Party councillor Erika Doyle, said that while the timeline given for the proposed full remediation project is “disappointing and not what any of us wanted to hear,” they acknowledge that statutory processes such as planning applications, environmental assessments and procurement, “stem from national and European legislation and cannot be bypassed.”

Cllr Doyle added that the committee will now “investigate” if other remediation methods might "require a shorter lead in period.”

She pointed out that the committee will work alongside the council towards “safely reopening the Cliff Walk in the shortest possible time frame.”

Meanwhile, a new fence has been erected at the Greystones end of the walk. A council spokesperson said: ”Safety fencing and signage that had previously been erected by Wicklow County Council and removed by persons unknown was reinstalled”.