THE opening of €3.5m extension to the Clare O’Leary Walk in Bandon last Friday may have caught many off guard, but the feedback from those who have used the new facility has been very positive so far.

The 2.8km extension of the walkway was funded under the Active Travel Scheme and was due to open in May but faced several delays due to inclement weather. Its opening came just days after local councillors asked when it would be officially opened to the public.

At last week’s meeting of the Bandon Kinsale Municipal District, senior executive engineer Richard Cahill said he had walked along the new walk ahead of its opening and was very impressed with the finished job saying it will be great for the town of Bandon and that people are getting excited about it.

Cllr Gillian Coughlan (FF) pointed out that an enormous amount of work had gone in to the extension and said it’s fantastic that it has come to fruition.

She also paid tribute to former senior executive engineer Charlie McCarthy who had insisted at the time that walks should off the road.

‘It’s impressive and it will be an amenity for all the people of Bandon. I’ve walked it too and it’s a great addition to the town,’ said Cllr Coughlan.

She also got confirmation that the walk has been ducted for lights which should be put in place at a later date but also asked if the car park closer to Innishannon will remain open for people to park at when accessing the walk.

However, Mr Cahill said their intention is not to open it at all as he described it as an ‘accident waiting to happen’.

‘It’s a blind bend and with the upgrade of the walk we would have even more people using this car park and trying to exit on to the N71 road,’ he said. ‘People will just have to park in Bandon if they want to use the new walk.’

He did confirm that plants and benches will be installed in the former car park to cater for walkers.