A cycling and walking route built over an old railway line is set for an upgrade.
The 7km Swinton Greenway which connects Monton Road to Manchester Road will become an entirely traffic-free walking and cycling route between Monton and Swinton with new direct links to nearby schools and colleges.
The scheme promises to provide an 'attractive', 'safe' and 'illuminated' route.
The mostly off-road route, much of which is already only open to pedestrians and cyclists, is built on a disused railway line known locally as 'Black Harry'.
Monton Green Primary School, Eccles College, Oakwood and Chatsworth High Schools and Community College and Springwood Primary School will all have direct access to the route once work is completed by the end of 2021.
The £5.7m project has been given the green light by Salford council and now awaits final approval from the Greater Manchester Mayor's Challenge Fund.
The local authority will spend around £1m on the project, using financial contributions from planning developers secured in Section 106 agreements.
Council officer Andy Stockton presented the plans to the procurement board.
He said: “The scheme itself is to create and off-road walking and cycling route from Monton to Swinton using part of the Black Harry disused railway line.
"It will deliver a total of 7km when complete, five of which will be off-road, and there’ll be 2km which actually links out into the community – to local schools, sports clubs, etc – to actually get those connections onto the main route."
A number of objections have been received to Traffic Regulation Orders in Folly Lane which were advertised by the local authority as part of the scheme.
A decision will be made by a senior councillor in a meeting on November 10, but procurement board chair Bill Hinds was keen for the scheme to progress.
He said: “Obviously we want to take people with us. But this is a programme that we would be very keen to see happen.
"We’ve had numerous discussions over it and I think it’s a real asset for people and the city.
"Yes, if people are objecting, we need to take note of that. But overall, I think the scheme is first class.”
P Casey (Land Reclamation) Ltd was awarded the construction contract this week, beating four competitors who also submitted tenders earlier this year.
The contractor, part of The Casey Group, has agreed to take on three new employees from Salford, donate £4,000 to social enterprise Six Degrees and put in 100 volunteering hours to improve and maintain green spaces.
The Rochdale-based company has also proposed a 'legacy project', creating a kiosk on the route for refreshments, bike repairs and nature walk information.
Work is expected to start in December and to be completed in a year's time.
This is subject to the approval of a business case from the Mayor's Challenge Fund, which is expected to be made at the end of October or early November.
