Plans to make the Lough Ree and the Shannon more accessible to people with disability have moved a step closer.
A fully accessible boat has arrived from Tallinn, Estonia which it's hoped will allow the Lough Ree Access for All project offer tours of the lake to people with disabilities, special needs and conditions such as dementia.
The group has been meeting politicians from Roscommon/Galway and Longford/Westmeath to explain their plans, and are awaiting a decision on their application for funding from the Just Transition fund to allow them acquire a second electricity powered boat.
They also hope to employ 15 people full time to develop a full range of tours on the water as well as bike hire and guided walking and fishing tours.
Survey Officers from the Department of the Marine who tested the boat on the lake yesterday gave it the green light - and Alan Broderick of Lough Ree Access for All has a special request.
