Bray is to get a riverside boardwalk as part of the final element of the River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
The boardwalk – similar to the one along the River Liffey in Dublin city centre – will be incorporated into the wall beside the Fran O’Toole Bridge
It will connect Castle Street to the People’s Park and will be a welcome added amenity for Bray.
The boardwalk forms part of the final large works package for the River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme. This part of the Scheme runs from the People’s Park to the Railway Bridge on the Little Bray side of the river.
The works consist of curved sheet piled walls approaching the Railway Bridge which will be faced with masonry and the construction of footpaths in this area as well as a stone faced sheet pile wall along the Lower Dargle Road from beside the Fran O’Toole Bridge to the Peoples Park.
It is expected that this work will be completed by November 2016 and open to the public in March 2017.
The work is very timely as part of the existing inner wall alongside the Lower Dargle Road was severely undermined and collapsed during a storm just before Christmas.
When completed Bray will be protected from a one-in-one-hundred year storm, including all the floods that would have ravaged the town in the twentieth century, and a one-in-200 year tidal event.
This has been a long time coming as the former Bray Town Council was campaigning for work since Hurricane Charlie in 1986.
The Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council, Cllr John Ryan, said: “This has been a huge project which will make a major positive impact on the people of Bray, with the protection of people and their homes. The boardwalk will connect to the Peoples Park and turn the river into a major amenity for both the people of Bray and visitors alike.”
Mr Bryan Doyle, Chief Executive, Wicklow County Council, said: “This contract is the last of a series of contracts that, when put together represent an investment of over €25m by the OPW in the River Dargle Flood Relief Scheme. Wicklow County Council wishes to acknowledge the assistance and continued support of the Minister with responsibility for the OPW, Minister Simon Harris, with this project”.