Oportunity taken to repair Bosley Flight

WITH the Macclesfield Bosley Flight closed through lack of water the opportunity has been taken to undertake repairs.

Canal & River Trust used this summer’s drought conditions by bringing forward a £200,000 major winter works repair project scheduled for the Bosley Flight on the Macclesfield Canal.

Essential repairs

The flight of 12 locks was due to close for several weeks in November whilst the trust carried out essential repairs to the lock chambers, but with the locks on the Macclesfield and Peak Forest canals currently closed this summer due to a lack of water, it has jumped on the opportunity to complete the project now, it relates, to minimise the inconvenience to boaters.

In the picture (left to right) are Canal & River Trust Construction Manager Paul Clegg and NW Reactive Response Team Manager Jeff Smith surveying the repair work at Bosley Flight Lock Eight.

It tells that its national engineering construction team has joined forces with regional staff and volunteers in a massive team effort to complete dozens of essential tasks, including the relining or replacement of lock gates and work on cills, paddles, mitres, spindles and quadrants. 

 This has been combined with mortar repairs, painting, re-pointing and the creation of a new boater landing stage between locks four and five, including new towpath surface and mooring bollards.

A positive outcome

Steve Ballard, North West operations manager with the Canal & River Trust, explained:

“It’s wonderful that we have been able to create a positive outcome from a negative situation during this challenging time when some of our canals have had to be closed to navigation due to lack of rainfall.

“Bringing forward the repair project means that as soon as we have enough water to reopen the canal, boaters won’t then be inconvenienced again by a winter works closure.

“And even though the Macclesfield and some other canals are not open for navigation, most of them are still in water and available for angling and paddle sports, and the towpaths still provide a great place to enjoy walking, jogging and cycling.”

The work of the Trust and its volunteers saw it becaome the first canal in the country to be awarded Keep Britain Tidy’s coveted Green Flag in 2015—the mark of a quality green space.