Victor gives the chance for a laugh

DEAR Damien, he of the Boaters Update  is giving us all a laugh this month—and don't we need it?

He's now trying to impress by stating ten years 'statistics'—celebrating ten years of CaRT (mis)management.

Telling that in that ten years the canals had a whopping 3.5 billion visitors, oh, and yes, lots of dogs a year to its towpaths.

This is all beyond me, so will take our Keith's reckoning, he telling:

I see CaRT are still touting the nonsense that there are, on average, 450,000,000 visitors per year to their waters? They say 4.5 BILLION over the last ten years! Yep, 4,500,000,000.

Now they are adding that 1000,000,000 dogs visit each year as well? Yep, 1 billion!

So they reckon they have around 1,233,000 people visit per day which averages to 616 people and 137 dogs per mile per day over the entire network? Which equates to 51 people and 11 dogs per hour over the average 12 hours of daylight per day?

Well all I can say is that there is nowhere near that amount of people and/or dogs along where I am at the moment so somewhere must be very crowded!

So right Keith, but surely no one is daft enough to believe it, only surprised at Damien accepting it, but expect he has to write what he is told...  Had a good laugh anyway—how about you?

Not good

The news yesterday of all the proposed closures of the northern waterways was certainly not good, but for me, and I suspect many others, it all comes down to that decision to 'wait until it breaks then mend it' that came into force with CaRT.

Maintenance on such old constructions as are our waterways needs regular maintenance, not only to keep it operating as it was in the past, but holding water, that it certainly is not doing now with more gates leaking than are not.

And that cancellation of so many of the much required winter maintenance has now come home to roost, with canal after canal running out of enough water for navigation, and so being closed.

It was after all a con—proclaiming that long list of winter works—when so many were then cancelled.  It could have impressed some, but then having to cancel with the resulting leaks unattended and subsequent lack of water has certainly brought the goose home to roost, with so many resulting closures.

And as one fella once remarked—"You ain't seen nothing yet...!"

Down South

But the south is not escaping, with the news that Knowle Locks on the Grand Union Canal are closed as one of its locks has both bottom paddles out of action.

Worse news is that no one will be bothered about them until Monday 'when the local team will look at resolving this fault'.

Could be

A suggestion from our Howard Clarke that could only be too true—he wondering if it was about time CaRT redesigned its logo, as the half sunken tyre at present in use has certainly not been too well received.

Well, that's another way to get rid of a few hundred thousand quid, that it seems so good at.

The year's best picture

There is very little doubt that the best picture so far this year showing the sheer wastage at CaRT is the one by Brian Jarrett who was 'venting his spleen' at it activities.

The picture of six people to fix a sign on a pole—and a completely worthless sign at that—and each with their own new van really shows how our money is being squandered by what can only be mismanagement.

After all in the days of British Waterways it took two to fix a sign, and they were necessary signs too, unlike those of today most of which are mostly self-propaganda.

Victor Swift