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Brightly-coloured walkways could hover above the River Irwell in a project to build a 100-mile network of walking routes across Manchester.

The CyanLines initiative, expected to cost at least £100 million over the next 10 years, will connect Manchester's parks, rivers, and canals with new signage, routes on the Komoot app, and major infrastructure projects.

They could include constructing new walkways along a city centre section of the River Irwell, with images showing cyan-coloured wooden paths floating above both the Manchester and Salford sides of the river, complete with jetties for rowing boats and cycle lanes which snake around existing road bridges.

It's thought the walkways are a while off becoming reality, with bosses calling it 'an idea' at this stage.

CyanLines could also extend the Castlefield Viaduct park after years of behind-the-scenes work by the National Trust, which transformed the former railway viaduct into a city centre park in the sky in 2022.

Last year, it revealed plans to extend the park and create a green walking route from town to Pomona Island. However, they have yet to raise the £20m required.

CyanLines is backed by a litany of public and private sector organisations, including Manchester council. Town hall leader, Bev Craig, said she is 'on a mission to make our city greener'.

She added: "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."