Fears for the future of the Rochdale Canal

THE Halifax Courier tells there are fears that the future of the Rochdale Canal could be in doubt.

It raises concerns, telling these have been raised that the Canal & River Trust, who are responsible for the upkeep of the canal, may be running low on cash for repairing the canal banks and leaking locks and for buying water supplies from United Utilities to keep the canals topped up, Janet Friend reports.

Frequently closed

It states the canal is frequently closed to through traffic due to emergency repairs and the number of boats using the waterway has been decreasing steadily for a number of years adding that lock gates  have a life expectancy of around 25 years, meaning there are maintenance issues to contend with their being so old. [It has had three stoppages in the past three weeks, and constantly lacks water.]

Paul Monahan, who lives beside the canal in Hebden Bridge, had a boat on the canal since 1992 until 2019, but now keeps his boat in the Midlands, told the Halifax Courier:

"There's problems with the canal system all over. Lack of maintenance, which can be put down to a lack of funding.

"The charity model, which was instituted about 12 years ago, hasn't really worked.

"I'm saddened and disappointed that the work of so many volunteers over so many years has not resulted in the thriving canal everybody once hoped for.

"It hasn't really brought the economic rejuvenation and multitude of jobs that was suggested would come along as a result of the re-opening.

"I don't think the trust are doing as much as they could as well as they could but with the constraints they have, they could be doing a lot worse.

"The big worry is that if there's a major failure or a big breach, it might provoke a closure because it would cost millions to repair."

The photograph shows the Rochdale Canal under reconstruction.

Have to work very hard

Nigel Stevens, from Shire Cruisers of Sowerby Bridge, operating boat hire since 1980, told the Halifax Courier: 

"The Trust have to work very hard with the resources they've got to keep it going, and I'd actually say this year it's been better than last year.

"Partly because they've been lucky with the things that have gone wrong, which are fairly random, and they've been very lucky with the weather, which has been wet and that helps the canal a lot because it doesn't have its full quota of reservoir capacity."

The canal was re-opened in 2002 with Millennium grant funding.