Rufford Branch closed for nearly two months

THOUGH Canal & River Trust have managed to repair the holes in the bed of the Lancaster Canal near Lune Aqueduct, there is still no access from the main system.

The Rufford Branch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal will now be closed to the end of September, meaning with the Ribble crossing stopped after this, there will neither be access to or from the Lancaster Canal this year.

Nowhere to go

This also means that the many boats moored on the Branch will have nowhere to go, as the problem is near the junction with the main line of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal, thus preventing any access.  Those boats already away from their moorings will have to moor elsewhere.

The problem is a collapsed timber culvert on the Rufford Branch, that obviously has not been inspected as we are told the timber is in worse condition than expected, and so will require seven weeks to repair.

Water voles

The problem we are told is getting access to the remote site of the culvert and also water voles in the area must be considered, so the expected date for re-opening is the 14th of September.

Leigh Branch

The stoppage at the Leigh Branch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal was cleared today (Saturday), with the long queue of boats that had built up being allowed through.