Manchester, England is on the way to completing its new ring road, the GM Ringway, a nearly-200 mile long long-distance walking trail that passes through all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester.
The route, which is designed around existing footpaths, canals, parks and open-access land, passes by more than 40 Grade I and II-listed buildings and 14 scheduled ancient monuments, as well as a variety of pubs, cafes, hotels and museums.
The entire way is open, but not all sections are yet fully sign-posted, a job that will take a few more months. Work on the project began in 2022 with support by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and two walking and countryside organizations, as well as a £250,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
It’s laid out as a counter-clockwise route, and is divided in four sections, whimsically labeled as Southern Start-Up, Exhilarating East, Noble North and Western Wind-Down, with each divided into five one-day stages, and each accessible to public transport. There are future plans for more walkways to link the Ringway to the city center.
