Gondola gone

Gondola gone

7 May 2025

THIRTEEN years after plans for a gondola ride into the Mournes were first unveiled, the project has come crashing to the ground.

The National Trust – which eight years ago urged Newry, Mourne and Down Council to consider an alternative scheme – said it will not provide a lease for the land it manages which is crucial to deliver the £44m Mournes Gateway Project.

Funding for the one kilometre cable car ride from Donard Park to a new visitor centre at a disused quarry on Thomas’s Mountain, which is at the heart of the project, was being provided by the Belfast Region City Deal and the local authority.

But there are now fears that the £30m City Deal cash could be lost to the area, with the council confirming it is seeking a meeting with its City Deal partners and the Department for Economy to discuss what happens next.

Campaigners opposed to the controversial gondola ride are delighted with the National Trust decision and have called for the council’s senior management team to resign after £1m of ratepayers’ money was spent on a project that is now dead in the water.

The conservation charity has also been criticised for taking too long to confirm if it would make its land available to deliver what was billed as a flagship tourism project.

The Trust confirmed the proposed project would “risk placing additional pressures on already degraded upland habitats” and it would “not be considering a lease at Thomas Quarry”.

Disappointed council officials have described the decision as “devastating” and a “huge economic loss for the area”.

With work underway on a comprehensive environmental impact assessment of the multi-million pound project, the National Trust confirmed last Thursday morning that it would not be providing the lease, with its decision due to be discussed at last night’s meeting of the local council.

The National Trust said the project should not go ahead in light of the “fragile and threatened state” of the Mourne landscape.

The Trust said its responsibility was to “restore nature in the Mournes, whilst balancing safe and sustainable access for people” and confirmed it has engaged with the council and “consistently expressed our serious concerns” as far back as eight years ago and “encouraged other options to be considered”.

The Trust insisted it has never endorsed the project and has not been a partner in its development, with its concerns about upland habitats not being in a favourable condition shared by local people.

It said it “cannot support a project of this scale” that would be inviting substantial visitor numbers into fragile and threatened areas of the Mournes landscape.

“Over the last two years we have participated in a range of project stakeholder engagement sessions and we have also been contacted directly by people from across the local community,” it said in a statement.

“This engagement has confirmed that local people share our concerns about the impact on the environment, the need for a robust assessment of alternative options for access to the Mournes and well-considered use of public funds. 

“We have informed Newry, Mourne and Down District Council and Department for the Economy of our position on this matter and understand that those who have championed the proposed gondola project as their preferred development option will be disappointed.

We will continue to work with the Council and others to consider alternative projects with significantly less risk and environmental impact.”

Newry, Mourne and Down Council said the Trust’s decision not to grant a lease will result in a huge project economic loss for the area, undermining a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Newcastle and the surrounding region.

The organisation said it was disappointed and frustrated with the Trust’s decision as a “comprehensive environmental impact assessment was already under way, to consider and address the specific concerns it raised”.

The council said a key aspect of the Mourne Mountains Gateway Project was the unique opportunity to consider visitor management to the wider Mournes area alongside the specific project location.

A spokeswoman for the council said this included proposed controls and interventions that would further enhance, protect and restore the fragile environment.

She said the project had “tremendous potential to revitalise our region creating significant employment and attracting up to 365,000 yearly visitors by 2029”.

The spokeswoman added: “We understand that this will be devastating for the local area which is dependent on a rural economy. Many locals welcomed the project to further bolster Newcastle and the Mournes as a global tourist attraction.

““We continue to advocate for sustainable development that balances conservation with the vital economic needs of our local communities and are currently engaging with the Department for the Economy and the Belfast Region City Deal partners to consider next steps.”