IT could be Scotland's answer to the famous New York High Line - a park in the air winding its way along an old railway viaduct.
And now developers say they are on track to realise their vision after work was completed on the latest phase of the ambitious project.
An iconic, 120-year-old swing bridge at Bowling Harbour in West Dunbartonshire has been restored and could one day for the gateway to Scotland's own 'linear park'.
The bridge lies at the entrance to Bowling Harbour
The new route will form a direct link between the Forth & Clyde Canal and the National Cycle Network route heading towards Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, with fundrasing well under way.
Detailed proposals have been submitted for planning approval and feature new viewpoints which will offer visitors the chance to enjoy the vistas over the canal and River Clyde.
Herald View: Bridging the link between Bowling and the Big Apple
The New York High Line is a 1.45-mile-long linear park which runs through Manhattan on the former New York Central Railroad.
The High Line in New York
The Bowling Harbour regeneration is a £3.2 million project which is being undertaken to revitalise the area and showcase its industrial heritage.
Helena Huws, Design and Development Manager at Scottish Canals, said: “Over the past few years, we’ve been working with our partners and the local community to breathe new life into Bowling Harbour, investing more than £3.2 million in the area.
"The restoration of the area’s iconic railway bridge to its former glory is the next step in that story and we’re delighted to see the project completed.
“Now we’re looking to deliver the next stages of the masterplan we’ve helped shape with the local community - bringing further investment, employment opportunities and vibrancy to Bowling, and developing a fantastic tourism and leisure destination fitting of the western gateway to the Forth & Clyde Canal.''
Herald View: Bridging the link between Bowling and the Big Apple
Councillor Iain McLaren, West Dunbartonshire Council’s Convener of Infrastructure, Regeneration & Economic Development, added: “The Bowling swing bridge is of real historical importance and it is wonderful to see it restored to its former glory as part of this ambitious project.
"The work already carried out Bowling Harbour has made it a destination well worth visiting and the plans for further regeneration of the area are extremely exciting.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel