£20 millions towpath cycle track

THE towpath of the whole of the Ashton Canal is to be made into one long cycle track, with work starting shortly.

The whole of the canal from Piccadilly Basin in Manchester city centre to Portland Basin on the Peak Forest Canal is to be entirely resurfaced into a cycle track as part of Manchester's £20 million Cycle City scheme.

All-weather path

The five miles of towpath will be resurfaced with an all-weather path with proposals to also include improvements to access points to the canal for pedestrians and cyclists.

Transport for Greater Manchester is working in partnership with the Canal & River Trust, to deliver what it describes as improvements along the canal, our being told that the result will be a high quality shared space route for cyclists, walkers, joggers and anglers, and will link local communities and the city centre.

The project is expected to be completed this year, and is funded by a £20 million grant, awarded in 2013 as part of a national funding scheme to provide increased and improved cycling infrastructure to Greater Manchester.