Council prevents Ware Boat Festival by closing towpath

Published: Wednesday, 03 July 2024

THE Inland Waterways Association issued (on 25th June 2024) a statement:

'Disappointment as Popular Boat Festival is Cancelled', Bill Ridgeway reports, which tells that:

'The popular Ware Boat Festival, run by IWA Lee & Stort Branch every year to coincide with the Ware Festival, organised by Ware Town Council, due to take place on the 5th to the 7th of July, has had to be cancelled at the last minute. Hertfordshire County Council has issued a closure order for a large section of the towpath on the Lee through Ware, including the entire site on which the festival was to be held. The closure is on the grounds that the state of the towpath is now so dangerous as to constitute a danger to the public. Hertfordshire County Council has erected barriers at either end and entrances to the towpath to prevent public access, and anyone setting foot on the towpath could be liable to prosecution and a substantial fine.'

Apparently the towpath is a public right of way so it is not clear whether or not responsibility for the upkeep of the towpath rests with Hertfordshire County Council.

The full statement is at https://waterways.org.uk/about-us/news/disappointment-as-popular-boat-festival-is-cancelled