Galway Bay fm newsroom - There are tentative plans for the construction of a footbridge alongside the bridge that leads into Oughterard town, from the west.
However, the presence of the pearl mussel in the Owenriff river may cast a shadow over the proposal.
This bridge is travelled by thousand of vehicles and is also on the school route for hundreds of pupils in the area.
Councillor Niamh Byrne raised the idea of a footbridge at the latest meeting of the Conamara Area Municipal Authority.
Council engineering staff said it could be looked at in the context of a more comprehensive village plan.
However, Deputy Noel Grealish told a recent Dáil and Seanad committee meeting lately that there would have been money to develop a new bridge some years ago.
However issues concerning the pearl mussel in the Owenriff river meant the plan had to be dropped.
Among the questions was the effect of a shadow on the pearl mussel.
It is not clear yet if any such shadow may hang over the footbridge.
