The Corbally Canal on a chilly day in 2021 by Niamh O’Connor and Shane O’Connor
This excellent photograph and others by Herbert Sheehan can be seen on the March edition of the Kilcullen Diary
Naas District Council Meeting Jan 9 2024
At a meeting of the Naas District Council on Jan 9. Two items were on the agenda for discussion. The first item was considered in the name of Councillor Moore.
That the members agree to support the vision of being able to use the almost 9 kilometre in length, Naas-Corbally Canal for future boating and water sports, in tandem with walking and cycling facilities now that Kildare County Council have been approved for a Greenway Feasibility Study Grant for the Naas-Corbally Canal, following our municipal district acceptance to enhance the Naas Canal Harbour Quarter with a Water Sports Hub.
The motion was proposed by Councillor Moore and seconded by Councillor Sammon. A report was received from the Planning team informing the members that they welcome the members support for the Feasibility Study to assess the development potential for enhancing the Corbally Canal between Naas and Corbally Basin as a Greenway. Consultants will be engaged in early 2024 and Elected Members will be updated accordingly. Funding Nov 2023
The second item was considered in the name of Councillor Clear.
That Kildare County Council carry out a feasibility study of developing a Greenway along the Corbally branch of the canal and to provide links to Newbridge and Kilcullen along the River Liffey. The motion was proposed by Councillor Clear and seconded by Councillor Sammon
A report was received from the Transport, Mobility and Open Spaces Department informing the members that funding has recently been secured by the Forward Planning Section of Kildare County Council under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS) to investigate the feasibility of developing a Greenway and Blueway along the Corbally Canal and to provide links from the Corbally Basin to Newbridge and Kilcullen along the River Liffey. This project will be commenced in 2024.
Councillor Moore stated that he had spoken with the Senior Planner who advised that everything could be looked at and there would be an opportunity to include this in the feasibility study. He said that he had looked at getting a slipway for a number of years and this might happen now.
Councillor Clear stated that it would be great to be able to go from Naas to Newbridge and Kilcullen along the canal and along the Liffey. Councillor Quinn asked had the unauthorised bridge been removed yet? He stated that the land either side of the Liffey was privately owned, and this would cause problems. He said that he supported the two motions, but challenges lay ahead. Resolved on the proposal of Councillor Clear, seconded by Councillor Sammon and agreed by the members that the report be noted.
Bryan Byrne in the March edition of Kilcullen Diary writes
The canal harbour at Corbally, just north of Kilcullen, has been drained, with the photos here from Herbert Sheehan showing the former waterway freight hub as not seen before, writes Brian Byrne. The work by Waterways Ireland involves dredging the space to clear a build-up of silt, in order to facilitate the free flow of water supply to the Grand Canal at Naas. The works will continue for a few months.
The long-closed harbour has been the subject of a number of proposals in recent years. In the Draft County Kildare Development Plan 2023-2029, a development of the Naas-Corbally link is an Objective in the Resilient Economy & Job Creation section, described as having potential for a range of tourism-related activities.
Corbally Harbour has a large silt build-up, and the plan says that when this is removed, it will be ‘an ideal space for vessels large and small’. The harbour could be a tourist destination for boating, cycling and walking between Sallins and Corbally — with picnic tables positioned in the large area to the south, ‘it will be an ideal stopover for refreshments when the Greenway reaches here from Naas and further south to Newbridge, Athgarvan and Kilcullen’ according to the plan.
The plan also says there are several business opportunities in the proposal – hiring kayaks, canoes and bicycles, barge trips between Naas and Corbally Harbour, refreshments and tourist information. The objective has received support and welcome from the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland – Kildare
Corbally Harbour was originally the terminus for what was called the Herbertstown Branch from the Grand Canal via Naas and Sallins. The canal branch was built in the early 1800s, with the Harbour being used as a collection and delivery point for goods in the area, including Reeve’s Mill in Athgarvan. The line is currently blocked for boat traffic by the Newbridge Road at Naas, where it was culverted in 1954 by a realignment of the road that bypassed the old bridge over the waterway.
Following two years of representations by Cllr Tracey O’Dwyer, funding of €45,000 was allocated last November for a study of the potential to make the link a greenway. In December, the councillor asked Kildare County Council to carry out a feasibility study into linking Corbally Harbour to Newbridge and to Pollardstown Fen and on to the Milltown Canal feeder as a first step in developing a 50km amenity canal loop centred on Newbridge.
