Local access to water sports to be boosted by new pontoon on River Ayr
Construction has started on a new pontoon on the River Ayr, with South Ayrshire Council hoping it will improve access to watersports for the local community.
Construction has started on a new pontoon on the River Ayr, with South Ayrshire Council hoping it will improve access to water sports for the local community.
The local authority is spending around £55,000 on the new pontoon which they say will increase opportunities for local people wishing to participate in sports like rowing, canoeing, kayaking and paddle boarding.
Bosses say it will provide benefits to a number of groups like young carers from Ayr, Kyle and Belmont Academies, school and community groups supported by the Council’s outdoor learning team, and the Outdoor Partnership and Kyle Kayak Club.
It will be located by Ayrshire College’s Ayr campus, and it’s set to be complete by October 2023.
It’s also ahead of the River Ayr playing host to a Scottish Regatta in 2024 as part of Scottish Rowing’s event calendar.
South Ayrshire Council Director of Strategic Change and Communities, Jane Bradley, told Greatest Hits Radio: “The construction of a pontoon on the River Ayr will be a superb asset for local watersports, ensuring participation in a wide range of water based activities is extended to many more people in our communities.
After Covid we recognised that people were using the outdoors a lot more, so it’s about bringing more opportunities for people to use the waterways in Ayr. But it’s also part of the council’s wider plan for sport an recreation in South Ayrshire.
“We want people to be able to come somewhere like the Citadel for example, access great facilities there and then walk or cycle up the river and use facilities at the pontoon if they wish.
“It’s all about linking the great outdoor spaces we have at our doorstep in South Ayrshire.
“This is all about improving access to sport and leisure facilities for the people in the area and to also attract more people to come to South Ayrshire.”