Step Into Nature: Manchester's New CyanLines Routes Revealed

Manchester is about to get a whole lot greener! A bold new project called CyanLines has been launched, with plans to create over 100 miles of connected parks, green spaces, rivers, canals, and even sky-high walkways across the city and beyond.

Over the next decade, CyanLines will transform how residents and visitors experience Manchester – linking well-known spots like Castlefield Viaduct, Mayfield Park, Ancoats Green, New Islington Marina, and St Peter’s Square with hidden gems such as pocket parks, canal paths, and newly imagined green spaces.

One particularly eye-catching proposal will be a new floating walkway across the middle of the River Irwell, complete with a canoe dock and storage area.

The plans will adapt to Manchester’s ever-expanding cityscape and will link up new and existing developments, providing green walking and cycling routes around town.

Manchester and Salford City Councils have already worked together and secured funding from the National Trust, Natural England, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Nature Towns and Cities programme.

The first four CyanLines routes will give everyone a chance to start exploring:

• CL1 Irk Valley Explorer – From Victoria Station & NOMA to Queens Park
• CL2 Marina to City Park Loop – Linking Mayfield, New Islington & Ancoats
• CL3 Knowledge Corridor Walk – From St Peter’s Square to Whitworth Park
• CL4 Irwell & Castlefield Loop – A riverside journey with a “park in the sky”

Councillor Bev Craig, leader of Manchester City Council, said:

“Manchester is on a mission to make our city greener, investing in new parks and green spaces including the likes of Mayfield, Ancoats Green and the Castlefield Viaduct, in addition to our work to celebrate and open up our rivers and canals. We are a city with exciting, and transformational plans for the future.

But there’s more that we can do together. CyanLines is a bold new initiative over the next decade to imagine and create over 100 miles of connected parks, green spaces and waterfronts.

This is just the start of CyanLines and I urge residents, business owners, community groups and leaders to join us on this very exciting journey to truly transform our city.”

Tom Bloxham MBE CBE, CyanLines project co-founder and chair, Urban Splash and founding Chair Manchester International Festival (MIF) and Factory International said that the same ambition that grew MIF will be applied to CyanLines.

He said:

“We want to bring the whole city along with us, to help us plan, fund and deliver CyanLines. No idea is too big, too ambitious, too audacious or too small or too straightforward.

Everyone wants more green space. Everyone wants to be able to walk to the end of Castlefield Viaduct. Everyone wants to be healthier and happier.

Imagine more species and drifts of plants and wildflowers and allotments in the city centre and being able to walk one or 100 miles of continuous paths linking all our amazing spaces. Together we can make it happen!”

Pete Swift, CyanLines project co-founder and CEO of Planit said:

“The first four CyanLines provide so much more than walkable and wheelable connections linking the existing and planned excellent green and blue spaces across the city, to bring us all closer to nature and nature closer to us.

The routes will be the starting point, or spring board, for a whole plethora of CyanLines projects which will bring new opportunities for nature to thrive and to be enjoyed.

The ambition for CyanLines does not stop at Manchester and Salford city centres. It will ultimately link up all Greater Manchester’s boroughs to bring our citizens and communities closer to nature and help drive a greener, healthier, and inclusive future. From Dunham Massey in the south, to Northern Roots in Oldham; from Leigh via RHS Bridgewater, Media City on to the foot of the Pennines.”

Whether you’re walking, wheeling, or cycling, these routes will connect people with nature right on Manchester’s doorstep – from city-centre adventures to future links stretching out across Greater Manchester. Imagine drifting through wildflowers, allotments, balcony gardens, and miles of pathways leading you from the heart of the city to the Pennines, RHS Bridgewater, and even Dunham Massey.

CyanLines is all about healthier, greener living – making it easier than ever to enjoy Manchester outdoors. You can already find the first four routes on Komoot, the world’s leading outdoor activity app, so why not start planning your next urban adventure?

This is just the beginning – with more routes, events, and community projects coming soon, CyanLines is set to be one of Manchester’s most exciting transformations.

To find out more about CyanLines, head HERE.