Comment—Home to roost

Published: Sunday, 30 January 2011

THE flood at Barton Turn has certainly brought home the necessity for regular inspection of the waterways, previously undertaken by lengthsmen, who had knowledge of the possibility of such occurrences.

If it had not been for the locals clearing out a bywash, once again British Waterways could have found itself facing compensation claims for flooded properties.

Did nothing

The fact that it did nothing until the day after it was reported can point only to two things—it didn't care or there was no available manpower.

Whichever it was is a poor reflection of its concern either for the waterway or for those affected by the resulting flood—caused by the lack of someone being available to attend to what is a common problem—a simple blocked bywash.

Require inspection

Coupled with their age and the continuing reduction in maintenance the waterways, even more, require regular inspection. Especially as we are being told they are more popular than ever, so getting more usage and thus more problems.  Which makes the abolishment of the lengthsmen, being able to recognise such problems and more than likely attend to them, very difficult to understand.

What British Waterways does not seem to realise is that this lack of spend on the care of its waterways can result in even more floods and breaches.  Then as homes become flooded the media will move in, and before long the waterways will not be seen as an asset, but as a threat, which is certainly not the way forward.

Very worried

Though most boaters are only concerned about getting from A to B, and possibly back, and have little care about any problem they may encounter, those who continuously cruise are very worried, with many wondering how much longer their way of life can continue, hampered as it is by this continued lack of care and maintenance.

Boaters, us included, are now wondering if it is safe to venture to distant waterways, as more and more stoppages, many alas, preventable, forestall a return.

No wise heads

It is a great pity there were no wise heads when £22 millions were  poured into the pubs fiasco, or worse still £33 millions more simply written off on the Gloucester Quays failure.  Just how much maintenance would that have paid for?

At the moment all that seems to matter is the transistion to a charity, and replacing workers with volunteers, whilst the waterways are of little concern. Our Allan Richards being told a particular request could not be attended to as the Board was too busy with the move to a charity.

We can all only hope that the people being brought in by the government to oversee this transition are indeed wiser powers than those at present, and needless wastage of limited resources is a thing of the past, with the waterways all that are important.

Tom Crossley