Way of life is under threat
REPRESENTING THEMSELVES as the Longest Village in the World, the National Bargee Travellers Association (NBTA) came together last weekend.
This was to celebrate life on the water at the Boaters’ Big Bash, held on the Grand Union Canal in West London.
Under increasing pressure
The UK’s diverse liveaboard boating community—self-proclaimed Longest Village in the World tells that it may be strong, but it is under increasing pressure from its landlord, the Canal & River Trust (CRT) as it seeks to pass on higher costs to boaters, despite failing infrastructure and closing services.
What it believes can best be described as a village fair, the Boaters’ Big Bash brought together live music from boater musicians; rousing speeches; a raffle; arts, crafts and entertainment for boating families; and, of course, a classic tea and cake stall.
Land-dwelling local residents came to join the celebration of life on the water, with many telling boaters how glad they were to see the once-abandoned waterways brimming with life again. It adding that all across the UK, itinerant boaters create and maintain strong connections with one another, as well as places and people they pass by.
'No go' areas
Yet it maintains this vibrant and unique community is under threat. In recent years, Canal & River Trust has taken an increasingly hostile attitude to itinerant boaters.Many historic mooring spots have been designated as ‘no go’ areas accompanied by draconian enforcement, while others have been turned into ‘chargeable moorings’ where boaters are expected to cough up £35 a night on top of the licence fees they already pay.
A surcharge has been introduced on this licence fee for boats without a home mooring, paradoxically penalising boaters for something they don’t have. Many boaters now fear that they’ll be priced off the water altogether.
The trust have also opened a commission into the ‘future of boat licensing’—making clear its desire to change the law that protects those living on the water, describing itinerant boaters as a 'operational, financial and reputational' challenge that needs overcoming.
