Shuttle bus to Wexford’s Vinegar Hill would enhance ‘one of the best tourist experiences in Ireland’
Wexford PeopleWexford County Council (WCC) is exploring the possibility of providing a shuttle bus to and from Vinegar Hill for tourists visiting the historic site.
This information was revealed at the September meeting of the Enniscorthy Municipal District (EMD) where Councillor Jackser Owens returned to one of his favourite topics of conversation.
“We have to provide a better service at Vinegar Hill than we are at the moment, a place where people can drive up to it, especially on a bus,” he said. “People have to get out of their cars and walk up a lane way to get to it, a 51-seater bus can’t get up there.”
Comparing the overall tourist experience unfavourably to that in Winnipeg, Canada, the independent councillor said those on the other side of the Atlantic knew how to exhibit their history.
“I’m going to Winnipeg next week, and I’ll be visiting a historical site where there wasn’t one bullet fired,” he said. “And yet you get brought round on a golf trolley there, and there’ll be eight students who’ll tell you everything that happened in a particular field.”
During the 1798 Rebellion, up to 30,000 government troops and United Irishmen fought at a large rebel camp on Vinegar Hill with the rebels suffering major losses. This marked the last attempt by the United Irishmen to hold and control territory taken in Co Wexford.
“We have people who died on Vinegar Hill,” continued Cllr Owens, “this is one of the best tourist attractions in Ireland. It needs to be a better experience for visitors. You can’t even get a drink of water there, it doesn’t have a bin.”
Acting district manager Barbara Nolan had some updates for Cllr Owens and explained why visitors have to walk the final few metres to access the site.
“There’s not a lot that can be done with the lane way because it’s part of a battleground, it needs to be preserved, and the ditches are part of that,” she said. “We are looking at installing a car park at the base with a shuttle service. And we may also look at a battleground trail with Oulart Hill and Boolavogue, which would enhance the attraction of these very important historical sites.”