News

  • WATERWAYS FREIGHT: New year, new mindset?

    WATERWAYS FREIGHT: New year, new mindset?

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    It is estimated that road congestion will cost British business £18 million in 2025, the semi-stationary traffic further exacerbating pollution in urban areas. Jonathan Mosse takes a look at freight development on the inland waterways. IT WOULD be good to use the opportunity that a new year presents to distil signs of positive trends towards…

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  • CONNECTING culture and communities

    CONNECTING culture and communities

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    THE WORLD-FAMOUS Pontcysyllte Aqueduct UNESCO World Heritage Site was celebrated at a festival of art, performance and culture.  The site, which featured in the Christmas release of the latest Wallace & Gromit film, Vengeance Most Fowl, was the focus of a special event which formed part a year-long community art placemaking project, the Bridge that…

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  • ROLLING STONE back on the canal

    ROLLING STONE back on the canal

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    ROCK legend Ronnie Wood has gone back to his family roots, buying a canal boat on London’s Regent’s Canal. The 77-year-old member of the Rolling Stones came from a line of travelling barge people. His parents had boats moored on the Regent’s Canal. Wood can trace his Romany family roots on the water back to…

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  • BRIDGE kick-starts £6m restoration plan

    BRIDGE kick-starts £6m restoration plan

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    A NEW bridge over the Chesterfield Canal is the first success of a multi-million-pound restoration scheme in Derbyshire. The bridge is the first phase of a £6 million restoration scheme managed by the Chesterfield Canal Trust. Most of the money will come from the Staveley Town Deal, a £25.2 million investment in Staveley through the…

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  • NEW OMBUDSMAN brings wealth of experience

    NEW OMBUDSMAN brings wealth of experience

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    The recently appointed Waterways Ombudsman is settling into his new position. Lucy Wood reports… JOHN Withington, who assumed the role in the latter part of last year, has a long career in customer experience in the public and regulated sectors. He worked in the administration of legal aid for more  than 20 years, where he…

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  • EXTENSION to East Anglian navigation

    EXTENSION to East Anglian navigation

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    Lucy Wood reports: Representatives of the Fund Britain’s Waterways coalition met officials to discuss the Middle Level navigation and welcomed news of plans to further improve facilities for boaters. THE Middle Level is part of the East Anglian Fens, between the North and South Levels, and the Bedford Level, which is managed by the Middle…

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  • ANNUAL BCN Clean-Up

    ANNUAL BCN Clean-Up

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    THE next Annual BCN Clean-Up is taking place on March 15-16 and this year will be targeting the Tipton areas of the Old and New Main Lines. As every year, the event aims to recover more than 20 tonnes of waste from the water as well as clearing rubbish from towpaths.  Organised by Waterway Recovery…

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  • CANAL BREACH severs north-south route

    CANAL BREACH severs north-south route

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    THE IWA has voiced its concern about the implications of the Bridgewater Canal embankment collapse in Greater Manchester on New Year’s Day. A section of the embankment at Dunham Massey crumbled after sustained heavy rainfall, resulting in water pouring into neighbouring fields and flooding a sewage works. The BBC reported that 90mm of rain fell…

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  • THE END for itinerant boaters?

    THE END for itinerant boaters?

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    THE National Bargee Travellers Association claims a new review into licensing could see the end of travelling life on the UK’s waterways. The association, which represents 2000 boat owners who travel the waterways but don’t have a home mooring, believes the Canal & River Trust’s (CRT) new independent review of licensing may try to remove…

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  • CANALS can help tackle UK crises

    CANALS can help tackle UK crises

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    CANALS can help tackle three crises facing the UK today – erosion of biodiversity, public health and climate change – according to a new report. The report demonstrates how the UK’s unique network of historic canals, a legacy of the Industrial Revolution, are being repurposed to address some of the greatest challenges facing society. The…

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  • CANAL SOCIETY looks back to the future

    CANAL SOCIETY looks back to the future

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    IT WAS a busy end of year for the Shropshire Union Canal Society with work parties, success on the Montgomery Canal and ghostly discoveries on the cut. A work party in December concentrated on hedge-laying at Crickheath, with volunteers putting in the final few hours of the year – taking the total for the society…

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  • INDEFINITE CLOSURE: Walsall canal section

    INDEFINITE CLOSURE: Walsall canal section

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    BOATERS will have to wait until they can navigate the section of the Walsall Canal closed following a toxic chemical spillage last year. Although the towpath has reopened alongside the affected section, boaters are still prohibited from using north of Ocker Hill to Wyrley and Essington Canal. There is no date for it to reopen.…

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  • WATERWAYS: Accessible for everyone

    WATERWAYS: Accessible for everyone

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    Lucy Wood reports… THE Accessible Waterways Association (AWA) has been reflecting on 2024, its first full year as an official association. Its founders, Tim and Tracey Clarke, said: “It has been a very busy year indeed, and included participation in the Boatlife exhibition at Birmingham’s NEC in February, the Crick Boat Show in May, the…

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  • DRONES USED for swing bridge inspection

    DRONES USED for swing bridge inspection

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    ENGINEERS used specialist drones to inspect the Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge in Cheshire as part of plans for summer repairs. The Canal & River Trust swung the bridge, which crosses the River Weaver, open twice during the inspection to allow engineers to see all parts of the bridge. Engineers used specialist drone equipment to help…

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