IT HAS been proven that the 'wait until in breaks then mend it' policy brought in by Canal & River Trust a few years ago is not working and certainly not saving money, explains Tom Crossley.
Time after time, such as swing and lift bridges, are needing ever increasing expensive attention, after—what can only be called—bodge-ups! Proved by their quickly failing again and so before long another bodge-up, all being very costly now that contractors have to be employed.
Last from Monday to Friday
Made worse by their propensity to make a job last from Monday to Friday. (As I witnessed on the Leicester Section when the 'major' operation of two strips on a pair of bottom gates of Irvin's Lock and a bit of 'clearing-up' took a week. The strips can just be seen in the picture.)
How much better in the first case, especially with swing and lift bridges, to have a proper professional overall with then subsequently many years of uninterrupted use? Cutting out the never ending constant contractor repairs.
Surely the payment for all these re-fixes must now exceed the cost of a proper initial overall.
Not fun for the boaters
Our Victor Swift makes fun of the ever failing Winkwell Swing Bridge on the Grand Union and the Coxhead Swing Bridge on the Leeds & Liverpool, often telling of the 'Wink on the Blink, and the 'Cox on the Rocks', but not at all fun for the poor boaters held-up by their constant failures. The Winkwell is shown with the Coxhead below.
And I often wonder why they fail so constantly?
There have been ten swing/lift bridge failures already this month—so how much is that costing when contractors first have to go out and 'assess the situation' or words to that effect, before any attempt to repair is attempted.
Then all too often things are further delayed as 'attempting to source parts', or 'continue to explore all the options that are available' or 'further investigation work required', or the latest phrase 'attempting to diagnose the fault'. All of course little more than excuses dragging on the closure.
And our being told by boaters time and time again about lost contractors on the towpath or yelling from a bridge where so-and-so bridge is! One pair of lost souls tramping the Rochdale searching for a swing bridge on the Leeds & Liverpool!
Holidays ruined
But more importantly—that seemingly was not taken into consideration—what about so many boaters who have subsequently had their holidays ruined by being stopped. After all, you can't just turn a narrowboat around anywhere and go back—you are well and truly stuck.
Here are this month's bridge stoppages so far:
1 Grand Union—Winkwell Swing Bridge
2 Leeds & Liverpool—Coxhead Swing Bridge,
3 Leeds & Liverpool—Moss Swing Bridge
4 Huddersfield Broad—Loco Lift Bridge
5 Llangollen—Wrenbury Lift Bridge
7 Peak Forest Wood End Lift Bridge (2)
8 Ouse—Selby Swing Bridge
9 Kennet & Avon—Ufton Swing Bridge
10 Gloucester & Sharpness—Parkend Swing Bridge.
The 'wait until it breaks then mend it' is certainly not working, as they are breaking too often.