Aylesbury Lock overdue and over budget

THE repairs to the collapsed Buckland Lock on the Aylesbury Arm is not only overdue, but we have discovered a colossal £500,000 over budget!

It was originally told that the repairs would be completed in August, in order to allow the boats that had been craned-out to leave their moorings, to be able to get back by the end of the season, but it will be three months behind schedule when eventually reopened.

Over budget

Only recently the cost of the repair was being given as £600,000, but we are now told it will cost £800,000—half a million over budget!  The delay and extra cost is put down having to spend £200,000 gaining access, that had to be through a construction site of a dairy.

However, Canal & River Trust maintain it will be reopened by the end of this month, with the cost coming out of its contingency fund.

Not fully understood

After all the investigation the reason for the collapse is still not fully understood, though a reason given is that it could be the clay on which the lock was built becoming saturated and swelling under the extremely wet weather and allowing the wall to collapse.