CaRT backs down over Leicester Line stoppages

THE furore over the 'emergency stoppages' of four locks on the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal has caused Canal & River Trust to put the stoppages back to late October.

Contributors to narrowboatworld left CaRT in no doubt that the decision to close four locks on the Leicester Line for four separate weeks was ridiculous, and the people at the Trust have obviously been prompted to at least put them back to late October. 

Could not have realised

It was obvious the people in charge of stoppages at CART could not have realised that there is still a deal of boating after the August school holidays. Not only boaters like ourselves, preferring to cruise after the children have gone back to school, but hire boaters too as the hire rates plummet after the school holidays have ended, meaning that September and October can be quite popular, and of course that section of the Grand Union is part of the Leicester Ring.

As followers of Victor will be aware, we too were affected by the closure of Wetstone Lane Lock, loosing three days of our cruise, with many other boaters also affected, especially with the proposed closure of Ervin's Lock on the 4th of September, that really was outrageous, as it has proved to be unnecessary.

Emergency?

Many boaters just cannot understand how the lock closures could have been classed as 'emergency closures', each taking exactly five days to fix and yet now all put back to October.  An 'emergency' needs immediate attention and is not possible to ascertain how long its repair will take.

The new date for the closure of Wetstone Lane Lock that was scheduled for the 11th to 15th of September has been put back to 9th to 13th October.

The new date for the closure of Blue Banks Lock that was scheduled for 9th to 13th of October has been put back to 23rd to 27th October.

The new date for the closure of Ervins Lock scheduled for 4th to 8th of September and the new date for the closure of King's Lock that was already late in October on the 23rd to 27th, have not yet been released.