I never quite know who reads my ramblings but I know that people do. I wonder whether any of those readers are members of the Labour Party or know someone who is? Labour Party members will be having a chance shortly to choose a new leader who might one day become Prime Minister.
I wouldn't normally consider this a topic worth having a rant about, except that it would seem that the current front runner is David Miliband, and history shows that he is no friend of the waterways.
Cast your minds back to 2006 and the series of IWA/Save Our Waterways demonstrations around the country's waterways. Do you remember what that was all about?
DEFRA, the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural affairs, got itself into massive trouble with the European Union. DEFRA had failed to meet its obligations to make payments to farmers under the EU's agricultural policy and incurred a huge "fine" - really a withdrawal of some of the grants DEFRA would have received from Europe. This led to a massive shortfall in DEFRA's budget.
Gordon Brown, the then Chancellor, could have made some extra cash available from contingency funds to help bail DEFRA out if they had needed it. However, the Minister in charge of DEFRA, keen to impress Mr Brown, insisted that he could cover the shortfall by making cutbacks elsewhere in his Department. Of course, the farmers had to receive their payments to keep the EU off DEFRA's back, so the burden of the cutbacks fell to the various quangos and other organisations that depended on DEFRA for their funding.
Those, of course, included British Waterways and the Environment Agency.
The cutbacks to BW's funding came part way through the financial year, with money clawed back that had already been promised, and BW's funding was reduced again in the years that followed.
Can you imagine how much better a state the waterways would be in today if funding had continued at 2005 levels?
And who was this Minister of State in charge of DEFRA who was so keen to show the Chancellor what a good boy he was and who, by a complete coincidence, was then appointed to the prestigious role of Foreign Secretary when Mr Brown became Prime Minister? Why - none other than David Miliband, who is now seeking to lead the party.
So - anyone who will have a say in that leadership election, or who is in a position to influence the opinion of anyone who has a vote... just ask yourself "What has David Miliband ever done for Britain's waterways?"
Ben
.
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Sunday, 23 May 2010
Hang on to your photos!
I was talking to Mr PW on Friday night and he told me about an email exchange he'd recently had.
He had received an email from some sort of travel company asking if he had any photos of a particular canal that they could use in their advertising and website. I won't name the company but neither Mr PW or I have ever heard of it. (I wouldn't want to give them to benefit of any extra publicity, anyway!)
Mr PW replied that his photos could all be seen on the "virtual cruise" of that canal. He was a little surprised when a reply came back asking for seven of these photos to be sent by email.
Mr PW tells me he sent a polite reply informing the sender that photos from Pennine Waterways were not available for free use for commercial purposes, adding that he would be happy to discuss terms.
The reply came back: "Unfortunately I don't control our budget. Thanks for your time, and help."
Mr PW, not one to let things pass without comment, send one last reply:
"I am astonished to hear that you are preparing advertising and a brochure but have no budget available for doing this. That could be the reason why I have never previously heard of [insert name here]."
"Hear, hear!" I say. What a cheek! So this guy was hoping to use some of the wonderful photos from Pennine Waterways to help his company make a profit but without offering anything in return!
He is probably now working his way down a list of websites and asking their owners for free use of their pictures.
All I would say to any webmasters out there who might read this, or indeed anyone with canal photos on any of the publicly accessible photo-sharing sites is "Hang on to your photos! Don't let the greedy grabbers get their mits on them!"
When I asked Mr PW whether he wasn't being a bit of a greedy grabber himself, asking for payment, he assured me that whenever he has allowed commercial companies to use photographs for websites or brochures, he has asked for payment to be made not to him but to a local charity or canal society.
He told me he is happy for a charity or society to get some benefit out of his photos being used, but doesn't see why a commercial company should get rich out of his efforts!
Ben
.
He had received an email from some sort of travel company asking if he had any photos of a particular canal that they could use in their advertising and website. I won't name the company but neither Mr PW or I have ever heard of it. (I wouldn't want to give them to benefit of any extra publicity, anyway!)
Mr PW replied that his photos could all be seen on the "virtual cruise" of that canal. He was a little surprised when a reply came back asking for seven of these photos to be sent by email.
Mr PW tells me he sent a polite reply informing the sender that photos from Pennine Waterways were not available for free use for commercial purposes, adding that he would be happy to discuss terms.
The reply came back: "Unfortunately I don't control our budget. Thanks for your time, and help."
Mr PW, not one to let things pass without comment, send one last reply:
"I am astonished to hear that you are preparing advertising and a brochure but have no budget available for doing this. That could be the reason why I have never previously heard of [insert name here]."
"Hear, hear!" I say. What a cheek! So this guy was hoping to use some of the wonderful photos from Pennine Waterways to help his company make a profit but without offering anything in return!
He is probably now working his way down a list of websites and asking their owners for free use of their pictures.
All I would say to any webmasters out there who might read this, or indeed anyone with canal photos on any of the publicly accessible photo-sharing sites is "Hang on to your photos! Don't let the greedy grabbers get their mits on them!"
When I asked Mr PW whether he wasn't being a bit of a greedy grabber himself, asking for payment, he assured me that whenever he has allowed commercial companies to use photographs for websites or brochures, he has asked for payment to be made not to him but to a local charity or canal society.
He told me he is happy for a charity or society to get some benefit out of his photos being used, but doesn't see why a commercial company should get rich out of his efforts!
Ben
.
Monday, 10 May 2010
Guillotines For The Chop
Well - they should be. Guillotine gates on locks, that is. They seem to be nothing but trouble!
I see that the the guillotine gate at Salterhebble has thrown another wobbly and is having to be operated manually by a man in blue. Trouble is that he is only there for three two-hour sessions each day.
This is not the first time, either. There were similar restrictions there for a whole year, along with some total closures, until the mechanism was supposedly fixed around 12 months ago.
What's more, I seem to remember problems on the guillotine lock in Todmorden a few years ago, as well.
The only other guillotine lock in this part of the country is the one on a narrow lock in Slaithwaite, on the Huddersfield Narrow. That one is not electrically operated so it should be alright, shouldn't it? Well, no. Even that one has had some sort of malfunction and has had to be operated manually by a man in blue. Last I heard it had scaffolding around it so it might have been fixed by now.
Why do we have these unreliable monstrosities on our locks? Because the roads that pass over the lower ends of the locks have been widened, leaving no room for the normal balance beams.
However, there are other ways of tackling this problem that do not involve potentially troublesome guillotine gates.
There are a number of locks with crook beams - where the beam is bent so that the path of its sweep remains upstream of the gate recess. One of the Huddersfield Broad locks is like this.
Then there are several systems which involve using a windlass to open and close the gate, like the chain-operated gates at Lock 92 at Castlefield and the ratchet mechanisms on the gates at Lock 84 on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in Wigan.
When Locks 1w and 2w on the Huddersfield Narrow were restored, hydraulically operated gates and paddles were installed, but these were not such a good idea as they proved to be very heavy to operate. Lock 2w has now had crook beams and standard gate paddles fitted and is very easy to operate. The same thing is supposed to be happening to Lock 1w as well some time soon.
So why bother with troublesome guillotine gates at all? The costs of all of these repairs and of the manual operation could instead be put towards the cost of replacing them with something simpler and more reliable. It would be more economical in the long run. So I say - give the guillotine gates the chop!
Ben
.
I see that the the guillotine gate at Salterhebble has thrown another wobbly and is having to be operated manually by a man in blue. Trouble is that he is only there for three two-hour sessions each day.
This is not the first time, either. There were similar restrictions there for a whole year, along with some total closures, until the mechanism was supposedly fixed around 12 months ago.
What's more, I seem to remember problems on the guillotine lock in Todmorden a few years ago, as well.
The only other guillotine lock in this part of the country is the one on a narrow lock in Slaithwaite, on the Huddersfield Narrow. That one is not electrically operated so it should be alright, shouldn't it? Well, no. Even that one has had some sort of malfunction and has had to be operated manually by a man in blue. Last I heard it had scaffolding around it so it might have been fixed by now.
Why do we have these unreliable monstrosities on our locks? Because the roads that pass over the lower ends of the locks have been widened, leaving no room for the normal balance beams.
However, there are other ways of tackling this problem that do not involve potentially troublesome guillotine gates.
There are a number of locks with crook beams - where the beam is bent so that the path of its sweep remains upstream of the gate recess. One of the Huddersfield Broad locks is like this.
Then there are several systems which involve using a windlass to open and close the gate, like the chain-operated gates at Lock 92 at Castlefield and the ratchet mechanisms on the gates at Lock 84 on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in Wigan.
When Locks 1w and 2w on the Huddersfield Narrow were restored, hydraulically operated gates and paddles were installed, but these were not such a good idea as they proved to be very heavy to operate. Lock 2w has now had crook beams and standard gate paddles fitted and is very easy to operate. The same thing is supposed to be happening to Lock 1w as well some time soon.
So why bother with troublesome guillotine gates at all? The costs of all of these repairs and of the manual operation could instead be put towards the cost of replacing them with something simpler and more reliable. It would be more economical in the long run. So I say - give the guillotine gates the chop!
Ben
.
Sunday, 18 April 2010
BW Missing a Trick?
A few weeks ago there was great dismay in the Wigan area when the canal ran out of water. The main lock flight was closed for repairs, so there wasn't the usual water coming down with boat movements. A local feeder was turned off because it was flooding a local estate. Then "vandals" came along and emptied the main pound through the town.
Then a mysterious thing was noted. Some blokes were seen dragging trolleys, bikes and other scrap out of the drained canal and loading them onto a lorry.
What is not clear is whether these blokes were opportunist metal collectors who spotted a chance of an unexpected haul while the canal was empty, or whether they were, in fact, the culprits who had drained the canal in the first place.
Now, having little better to do with my time, I have been giving some thought to this.
If loading a lorry with scrap metal to sell onwards is such a worthwhile thing to do, then since our canals are so full of such scrap crap, it seems to me that BW have missed a trick here.
Why doesn't BW make contact with blokes like the ones with the lorry in Wigan, tell them when various pounds are going to be drained on a planned and managed basis during the normal Winter stoppages, and invite them to come along with their lorry and clear the canal bed of scrap?
The scrap collectors would be happy at having a legitimate source. Boaters would be happy that there was less chance of getting grounded on a trolley or a motor bike. BW would be happy that someone wasn't coming along at night and emptying their pounds. They would also be happy that the junk was being removed for them at no cost.
I can't see a downside to this idea. Maybe someone should mention it to BW?
Ben
.
Then a mysterious thing was noted. Some blokes were seen dragging trolleys, bikes and other scrap out of the drained canal and loading them onto a lorry.
What is not clear is whether these blokes were opportunist metal collectors who spotted a chance of an unexpected haul while the canal was empty, or whether they were, in fact, the culprits who had drained the canal in the first place.
Now, having little better to do with my time, I have been giving some thought to this.
If loading a lorry with scrap metal to sell onwards is such a worthwhile thing to do, then since our canals are so full of such scrap crap, it seems to me that BW have missed a trick here.
Why doesn't BW make contact with blokes like the ones with the lorry in Wigan, tell them when various pounds are going to be drained on a planned and managed basis during the normal Winter stoppages, and invite them to come along with their lorry and clear the canal bed of scrap?
The scrap collectors would be happy at having a legitimate source. Boaters would be happy that there was less chance of getting grounded on a trolley or a motor bike. BW would be happy that someone wasn't coming along at night and emptying their pounds. They would also be happy that the junk was being removed for them at no cost.
I can't see a downside to this idea. Maybe someone should mention it to BW?
Ben
.
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Poo Bags
Dog owners, like their pets, come in a number of different sorts.
Most dog owners, of course, are thoughtful and considerate people who care about other people and about their environment. Some, unfortunately, are not. A small number, it would seem have smaller brains than their pets.
Most dog owners, enjoying a walk along the canal towpath, will take plastic bags with them. Then, when their pets feel the urge to leave something behind, the owners will pick it up in the bag and dispose of it in a bin or take it home with them.
Some, however, who are not so considerate, will not take bags with them and simply look the other way when their pooch crouches down!
Then we have the few dog owners of little brain. They do take bags with them and they do use the bags pick up the poo. But then what do they do? They drape the bags from the branches of trees or hedges! And if there are no handy hedges then they lob them into the cut!
It would be better if they left the poo on the path for others to walk into their homes. Then, at least, any poo left behind will bio-degrade after a while. Not so the plastic bags. They will just stay there until someone takes them off. Leaving the poo in a bag somewhere totally misses the point of picking it up.
An old cynic like me, however, might suspect that these bag danglers are not quite so lacking in brain cells as their behaviour would suggest. It would not surprise me if they take the bags out with them only for the show of it. If no-one is about when their dogs do their doings, then the bags stay in their pockets. However, if anyone is in sight when their dog leaves its message, then they show what good dog owners they are by using the bags to pick the stuff up. But then, as soon as other people are out of sight, they decorate the nearest hedgerow with their stinking trophies.
Have you seen the photo on Pennine Waterways News of the tree in Todmorden that BW decorated with poo bags to make the point?
A great idea for a publicity stunt. However, I suspect that the lazy, selfish, inconsiderate people who do this sort of thing are unlikely to take any notice unless BW staff collect the bags from the hedges, follow them home and deliver it through their letterboxes.
I know that's what I'd like to do!
Ben
.
Most dog owners, of course, are thoughtful and considerate people who care about other people and about their environment. Some, unfortunately, are not. A small number, it would seem have smaller brains than their pets.
Most dog owners, enjoying a walk along the canal towpath, will take plastic bags with them. Then, when their pets feel the urge to leave something behind, the owners will pick it up in the bag and dispose of it in a bin or take it home with them.
Some, however, who are not so considerate, will not take bags with them and simply look the other way when their pooch crouches down!
Then we have the few dog owners of little brain. They do take bags with them and they do use the bags pick up the poo. But then what do they do? They drape the bags from the branches of trees or hedges! And if there are no handy hedges then they lob them into the cut!
It would be better if they left the poo on the path for others to walk into their homes. Then, at least, any poo left behind will bio-degrade after a while. Not so the plastic bags. They will just stay there until someone takes them off. Leaving the poo in a bag somewhere totally misses the point of picking it up.
An old cynic like me, however, might suspect that these bag danglers are not quite so lacking in brain cells as their behaviour would suggest. It would not surprise me if they take the bags out with them only for the show of it. If no-one is about when their dogs do their doings, then the bags stay in their pockets. However, if anyone is in sight when their dog leaves its message, then they show what good dog owners they are by using the bags to pick the stuff up. But then, as soon as other people are out of sight, they decorate the nearest hedgerow with their stinking trophies.
Have you seen the photo on Pennine Waterways News of the tree in Todmorden that BW decorated with poo bags to make the point?
A great idea for a publicity stunt. However, I suspect that the lazy, selfish, inconsiderate people who do this sort of thing are unlikely to take any notice unless BW staff collect the bags from the hedges, follow them home and deliver it through their letterboxes.
I know that's what I'd like to do!
Ben
.
Thursday, 18 March 2010
Joined-up Thinking?
"Joined-up thinking" is one of those irritating buzz-phrases that sometimes get bandied about by those pursuing their pro-active critical missions of client-focused deliverables. Sad, really, because real joined-up thinking can be a positive advantage in so many situations.
To those of us who have spent time on the waterways over the years, "joined-up thinking" is not something that we would automatically associate with British Waterways.
Take two examples that have recently come to light affecting the Huddersfield Narrow Canal...
Many of you will be aware that the eastern half of this wonderful waterway has been closed since early last September, following a sudden worsening of a long-standing problem at Lock 14e of leaking into the nearby mill. (Read about it here.) Since repairs were already scheduled for January it was decided to stick with that date, rather than bring the work forward, and keep the canal closed until the work was done.
They were then taken by surprise when it snowed in the Winter. Apparently this was not expected and so the date for completing the work was put back.
Then, last week, BW announced that the completion date was being put back even further, to the beginning of April. The reason given? The additional work involved in the "relining of the paddle culvert which has to be done to allow the lock to be reopened to navigation."
Excuse me? Why has this come as a surprise? When BW investigated the serious leak last September, it was found that the new flow was coming from the paddle culvert. So why wasn't this re-lining built into the work that began in January? Or rather, why is it being used now as an excuse for the work taking longer than expected? There's either a complete lack of joined-up thinking, or a complete load of spin going on here.
Now take Standedge Tunnel. It was advertised that the tunnel would re-open this weekend for visitors to enjoy the short trips into the tunnel. But there are no tunnel boats there, because they went away to Liverpool last month for a bit of maintenance. (Read about it here.)
BW complains that the contractors have let them down and the boats will be late coming back. Excuse me? Why were they only sent to Liverpool a month ago? Why was the maintenance not planned for early November? They could have been back before the worst of the winter weather arrived and all ready for this year's visitor season. Why cut is so fine?
Being of a suspicious mind, I wonder whether either of these situations has anything to do with the recent re-organisation at BW. Standege Tunnel and the eastern half of the Huddersfield Narrow have been transferred from the Yorkshire unit to the new "Manchester and Pennine" unit, along with the western half of the HNC, which was previously in the North West unit.
Did that imminent change of management lead to decisions being put on hold? Was there a feeling of "well, it will be someone else's problem soon"? Did some people not want to take decisions that would affect their successors? Did some people not want to spend money that would later have to come from someone else's budget?
These may seem rather unkind things to think but they are the questions that present themselves when I ponder on these issues. The only other explanation I can think of is a complete lack of joined-up thinking. Surely not?
Ben
.
To those of us who have spent time on the waterways over the years, "joined-up thinking" is not something that we would automatically associate with British Waterways.
Take two examples that have recently come to light affecting the Huddersfield Narrow Canal...
Many of you will be aware that the eastern half of this wonderful waterway has been closed since early last September, following a sudden worsening of a long-standing problem at Lock 14e of leaking into the nearby mill. (Read about it here.) Since repairs were already scheduled for January it was decided to stick with that date, rather than bring the work forward, and keep the canal closed until the work was done.
They were then taken by surprise when it snowed in the Winter. Apparently this was not expected and so the date for completing the work was put back.
Then, last week, BW announced that the completion date was being put back even further, to the beginning of April. The reason given? The additional work involved in the "relining of the paddle culvert which has to be done to allow the lock to be reopened to navigation."
Excuse me? Why has this come as a surprise? When BW investigated the serious leak last September, it was found that the new flow was coming from the paddle culvert. So why wasn't this re-lining built into the work that began in January? Or rather, why is it being used now as an excuse for the work taking longer than expected? There's either a complete lack of joined-up thinking, or a complete load of spin going on here.
Now take Standedge Tunnel. It was advertised that the tunnel would re-open this weekend for visitors to enjoy the short trips into the tunnel. But there are no tunnel boats there, because they went away to Liverpool last month for a bit of maintenance. (Read about it here.)
BW complains that the contractors have let them down and the boats will be late coming back. Excuse me? Why were they only sent to Liverpool a month ago? Why was the maintenance not planned for early November? They could have been back before the worst of the winter weather arrived and all ready for this year's visitor season. Why cut is so fine?
Being of a suspicious mind, I wonder whether either of these situations has anything to do with the recent re-organisation at BW. Standege Tunnel and the eastern half of the Huddersfield Narrow have been transferred from the Yorkshire unit to the new "Manchester and Pennine" unit, along with the western half of the HNC, which was previously in the North West unit.
Did that imminent change of management lead to decisions being put on hold? Was there a feeling of "well, it will be someone else's problem soon"? Did some people not want to take decisions that would affect their successors? Did some people not want to spend money that would later have to come from someone else's budget?
These may seem rather unkind things to think but they are the questions that present themselves when I ponder on these issues. The only other explanation I can think of is a complete lack of joined-up thinking. Surely not?
Ben
.
Friday, 5 March 2010
Record Breaking on the Leeds and Liverpool
Mr PW keeps asking me to write a piece for this blog. I keep telling him that nobody reads it but he assures me that someone called Andrew Denny does, so - just for you, Andrew - here are a few thoughts about Record Breaking on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal towing path.
Now, just in case you are wondering, I am not talking about violent protests involving piles of Des O'Connnor albums, but of over-speedy cyclists.
It seems that the Leeds and Liverpool, being Britain's longest canal, is attracting the attention of folk who want to do extreme things to raise money for charity. Some people walk the entire 127 miles for charity. Some people paddle the entire length in a canoe or kayak. Some people do the journey on a bike.
Nothing much wrong with that, you might say. But some cyclists are not content with a pleasant pootle from A to B - no, some of them want to do it as quickly as possible. Some talk of setting records for cycling the 127 mile towpath in the shortest time. Some are even talking about setting records for the fastest two-way journey of 254 miles!
Last year, a fellow called Colin Dobson cycled from Leeds to Liverpool and back in 22 hours and 38 minutes! This year he is planning to do it again but is hoping to take less than 20 hours! Read all about it here.
Now, he seems to be a very well-intentioned chap and he raised over £3,000 for a motor-neurone cause. But surely, people would still sponsor him for the epic journey even if he wasn't going so fast? He admits that he hadn't set out to beat any record but that he just sort of got carried away. I have noticed that a lot of cyclists do seem to become highly focused on the act of cycling to the exclusion of what is going on around them.
Think, then, of a typical canal towpath, with its mixture of users. You've got your dog walkers, sometimes with their dog on one of those extending long leads. You might have families out for a stroll with their young children.You will have fishermen with their encampments of equipment, occasionally pulling in their perch poles to do whatever needs to be done. You could have a group of ramblers walking along chatting as they go. A couple of them may be a little hard of hearing. You could also have leisure cyclists wheeling casually along in ones and twos.
Then, into all this varied mixture of users, like a scythe through butter, comes hurtling some well-meaning charity-sponsored cyclist trying to get from Leeds to Liverpool in under eight hours! Imagine the scene as towpath users go scattering in all directions to get out of the way! How many might end up in the cut? What of the elderly rambler who can't hear him approaching from behind? What of the dog on one side of the towpath, attached to its owner on the other side of the towpath by a length of extending lead? What of the unsuspecting boater just hopping off the bow to set a lock? Or the angler in the process of pulling in his pole?
Quite simply, the canal towpath is not the place to attempt cycling speed records. Doing so is going to put other canal users at risk! By all means use the towpath as a route for a gentle cycle ride to raise money for worthy causes, but if you want to make it some sort of speed challenge then - please cyclists - go and do it on the roads instead!
Now, if the idea of one chap on a bike hurtling along the towpath as fast as he can makes you uneasy, then hear this... on March 29th and 30th you will have at least 27 sponsored bikers whizzing through! A group of badminton players from Leeds Metropolitan University are doing a two-way cycle of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal towpath over two days. With three weeks to go they have 27 riders signed up so far. Read more here and here.
Now the badminton players don't say that they are out to set any records, but if they are going to cover the whole 127 miles on each of the two days, I can't see them wanting to hang around.
Don't get me wrong - I am all in favour of people doing sponsored events for charity, but I am worried that the canal towpath is being seen as a convenient traffic-free route where the riders won't need to stop for traffic lights or other such inconveniences. (Do cyclists stop for traffic lights?) I am not convinced that the cyclists will be very aware of or considerate towards the needs of the various users they will encounter.
Just wait until some of these cyclists discover that the Rochdale Canal towpath is being converted into a super-cycleway! Anyone for Halifax to Manchester in an hour?
Ben
.
Now, just in case you are wondering, I am not talking about violent protests involving piles of Des O'Connnor albums, but of over-speedy cyclists.
It seems that the Leeds and Liverpool, being Britain's longest canal, is attracting the attention of folk who want to do extreme things to raise money for charity. Some people walk the entire 127 miles for charity. Some people paddle the entire length in a canoe or kayak. Some people do the journey on a bike.
Nothing much wrong with that, you might say. But some cyclists are not content with a pleasant pootle from A to B - no, some of them want to do it as quickly as possible. Some talk of setting records for cycling the 127 mile towpath in the shortest time. Some are even talking about setting records for the fastest two-way journey of 254 miles!
Last year, a fellow called Colin Dobson cycled from Leeds to Liverpool and back in 22 hours and 38 minutes! This year he is planning to do it again but is hoping to take less than 20 hours! Read all about it here.
Now, he seems to be a very well-intentioned chap and he raised over £3,000 for a motor-neurone cause. But surely, people would still sponsor him for the epic journey even if he wasn't going so fast? He admits that he hadn't set out to beat any record but that he just sort of got carried away. I have noticed that a lot of cyclists do seem to become highly focused on the act of cycling to the exclusion of what is going on around them.
Think, then, of a typical canal towpath, with its mixture of users. You've got your dog walkers, sometimes with their dog on one of those extending long leads. You might have families out for a stroll with their young children.You will have fishermen with their encampments of equipment, occasionally pulling in their perch poles to do whatever needs to be done. You could have a group of ramblers walking along chatting as they go. A couple of them may be a little hard of hearing. You could also have leisure cyclists wheeling casually along in ones and twos.
Then, into all this varied mixture of users, like a scythe through butter, comes hurtling some well-meaning charity-sponsored cyclist trying to get from Leeds to Liverpool in under eight hours! Imagine the scene as towpath users go scattering in all directions to get out of the way! How many might end up in the cut? What of the elderly rambler who can't hear him approaching from behind? What of the dog on one side of the towpath, attached to its owner on the other side of the towpath by a length of extending lead? What of the unsuspecting boater just hopping off the bow to set a lock? Or the angler in the process of pulling in his pole?
Quite simply, the canal towpath is not the place to attempt cycling speed records. Doing so is going to put other canal users at risk! By all means use the towpath as a route for a gentle cycle ride to raise money for worthy causes, but if you want to make it some sort of speed challenge then - please cyclists - go and do it on the roads instead!
Now, if the idea of one chap on a bike hurtling along the towpath as fast as he can makes you uneasy, then hear this... on March 29th and 30th you will have at least 27 sponsored bikers whizzing through! A group of badminton players from Leeds Metropolitan University are doing a two-way cycle of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal towpath over two days. With three weeks to go they have 27 riders signed up so far. Read more here and here.
Now the badminton players don't say that they are out to set any records, but if they are going to cover the whole 127 miles on each of the two days, I can't see them wanting to hang around.
Don't get me wrong - I am all in favour of people doing sponsored events for charity, but I am worried that the canal towpath is being seen as a convenient traffic-free route where the riders won't need to stop for traffic lights or other such inconveniences. (Do cyclists stop for traffic lights?) I am not convinced that the cyclists will be very aware of or considerate towards the needs of the various users they will encounter.
Just wait until some of these cyclists discover that the Rochdale Canal towpath is being converted into a super-cycleway! Anyone for Halifax to Manchester in an hour?
Ben
.
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Rochdale Super-Cycleway?
Is the Rochdale Canal's towpath to become the country's latest cycling super-highway?
Already much of the length of the towpath in the urban areas of Greater Manchester has been improved by being given a hard surface. Now Rochdale Council is about to give the stretch through Littleborough and up over the Summit the same treatment. [link] Not only that but Calderdale Council is planning an even harder surface for the rest of the towpath down through Todmorden, Hebden Bridge and Sowerby Bridge.
I'm sure most of us will be glad to be able to take a stroll along the towpath without getting our feet wet in enormous puddles that stretch the whole way across the width of the path.
But there are downsides to this "improvement".
First of all it is not so pleasant to walk along miles of hard surface. Some of us are not as robust as we used to be and feel the strain in our legs and feet! Compare walking for five miles along a traditional canal towpath with walking the same distance along the pavement at the side of a road and you will see what I mean.
Secondly, it has been seen elsewhere that a firm surface on a towpath encourages cyclists to go faster.
Now, there are a great many towpath cyclists out there who are very considerate of other users and share their notion that the towpath is a place to come for a bit of gentle recreation.
However, there are also plenty of cyclists who use our towpaths who get their heads down and their speed up, seemingly oblivious to all else, including other towpath users. Some stretches of towpath in London have almost become no-go areas for walkers. You certainly wouldn't feel that your child or dog was safe as what seem like the lead riders of the Tour of France hurtle by.
Surely some sort of compromise is called for? A better surface, yes - but a surface that is more pleasant to walk on and less pleasant to cycle rapidly on.
Rochdale Council wants to continue with the same surface used in the urban areas up through the rural stretches. And they were going to do this with no consultation! Only at the last minute, after several user groups kicked up a fuss, was a meeting arranged for people to see what they were going to do and to express their views.
What are the chances of them changing their minds, though? It was being done so quickly because funding was offered as long as the work was done by the end of the financial year.
BW's Nick Smith told Manchester IWA that the process had moved very quickly due to the funding timescales which had given rise to a lack of opportunity to complete a full consultation process.
Nigel Stevens of Shire Cruisers commented that the rush to spend grant money is a very poor excuse for getting things wrong. How very true! He says that his hire boat customers, when walking on the towpath, have often felt in danger of being run down by bikes. And that was before the new surfacing is in place!
I encourage anyone around Smithy Bridge on Saturday (20th) to go along to the station at 10 o'clock to see what is being proposed and to make sure their views are heard. I encourage BW and local councils to engage in better consultation over such things so that the views of all user groups are taken into consideration. BW should also consider whether getting into bed with schemes such as those promoted by Sustrans is really going to be beneficial for all canal users.
Towpaths are for all - not just for cyclists!
Already much of the length of the towpath in the urban areas of Greater Manchester has been improved by being given a hard surface. Now Rochdale Council is about to give the stretch through Littleborough and up over the Summit the same treatment. [link] Not only that but Calderdale Council is planning an even harder surface for the rest of the towpath down through Todmorden, Hebden Bridge and Sowerby Bridge.
I'm sure most of us will be glad to be able to take a stroll along the towpath without getting our feet wet in enormous puddles that stretch the whole way across the width of the path.
But there are downsides to this "improvement".
First of all it is not so pleasant to walk along miles of hard surface. Some of us are not as robust as we used to be and feel the strain in our legs and feet! Compare walking for five miles along a traditional canal towpath with walking the same distance along the pavement at the side of a road and you will see what I mean.
Secondly, it has been seen elsewhere that a firm surface on a towpath encourages cyclists to go faster.
Now, there are a great many towpath cyclists out there who are very considerate of other users and share their notion that the towpath is a place to come for a bit of gentle recreation.
However, there are also plenty of cyclists who use our towpaths who get their heads down and their speed up, seemingly oblivious to all else, including other towpath users. Some stretches of towpath in London have almost become no-go areas for walkers. You certainly wouldn't feel that your child or dog was safe as what seem like the lead riders of the Tour of France hurtle by.
Surely some sort of compromise is called for? A better surface, yes - but a surface that is more pleasant to walk on and less pleasant to cycle rapidly on.
Rochdale Council wants to continue with the same surface used in the urban areas up through the rural stretches. And they were going to do this with no consultation! Only at the last minute, after several user groups kicked up a fuss, was a meeting arranged for people to see what they were going to do and to express their views.
What are the chances of them changing their minds, though? It was being done so quickly because funding was offered as long as the work was done by the end of the financial year.
BW's Nick Smith told Manchester IWA that the process had moved very quickly due to the funding timescales which had given rise to a lack of opportunity to complete a full consultation process.
Nigel Stevens of Shire Cruisers commented that the rush to spend grant money is a very poor excuse for getting things wrong. How very true! He says that his hire boat customers, when walking on the towpath, have often felt in danger of being run down by bikes. And that was before the new surfacing is in place!
I encourage anyone around Smithy Bridge on Saturday (20th) to go along to the station at 10 o'clock to see what is being proposed and to make sure their views are heard. I encourage BW and local councils to engage in better consultation over such things so that the views of all user groups are taken into consideration. BW should also consider whether getting into bed with schemes such as those promoted by Sustrans is really going to be beneficial for all canal users.
Towpaths are for all - not just for cyclists!
Monday, 1 February 2010
No Point In Asking Us!
Those of you with nothing better to do with your time than listen to the radio might have heard an item on today's You and Yours programme about boat moorings.
The report says that BW has put up prices because of the shortage of residential moorings with planning permission. BW says that the number of people living on boats has doubled in the last five years. Some "houseboaters" claim, unsurprisingly, that BW is exploiting the situation.
The lovely Sally Ash from BW told the programme that there are very few residential moorings with local authority planning consent and that the demand is hugely outstripping supply.
The chairman of the Residential Boat Owners Association, Rex Walden, pointed out that planning permission is needed for someone to live aboard a boat on a permanent mooring and reckons that 90% of people living on such a mooring are doing so illegally. He said that councils won't give permission for residential moorings, as they see them in the same way as "bricks and mortar".
When the reporter, Sarah Swaddling, approached the Local Government Association, which represents councils, for an interview, they said they "didn't have the expertise to be able to comment".
The Department for Communities and Local Government, asked about the lack of national planning guidance for moorings, said "We do not consider it appropriate for Government to issue guidance on dealing with applications for residential mooring development, as the decision is best taken locally after careful consideration of the impact on the local area."
So the Government says that it's up to local councils and local councils say they don't have the expertise! Don't ask us, 'cos we don't know!
Meanwhile, are something like 90% of residential boaters really living on unofficial moorings? If they are then it seems pretty likely that they are not paying Council Tax. The local councils, by ignoring the need for residential moorings, are losing out on the potential revenue, while the boaters live with the constant worry that some official might come along and evict them from the mooring.
You can listen to the item for the next week on the BBC website. Fast forward to 12 minutes into the programme.
Oh, and can someone please tell the BBC that those floaty things that were being talked about are not called "houseboats"?
ben-9
The report says that BW has put up prices because of the shortage of residential moorings with planning permission. BW says that the number of people living on boats has doubled in the last five years. Some "houseboaters" claim, unsurprisingly, that BW is exploiting the situation.
The lovely Sally Ash from BW told the programme that there are very few residential moorings with local authority planning consent and that the demand is hugely outstripping supply.
The chairman of the Residential Boat Owners Association, Rex Walden, pointed out that planning permission is needed for someone to live aboard a boat on a permanent mooring and reckons that 90% of people living on such a mooring are doing so illegally. He said that councils won't give permission for residential moorings, as they see them in the same way as "bricks and mortar".
When the reporter, Sarah Swaddling, approached the Local Government Association, which represents councils, for an interview, they said they "didn't have the expertise to be able to comment".
The Department for Communities and Local Government, asked about the lack of national planning guidance for moorings, said "We do not consider it appropriate for Government to issue guidance on dealing with applications for residential mooring development, as the decision is best taken locally after careful consideration of the impact on the local area."
So the Government says that it's up to local councils and local councils say they don't have the expertise! Don't ask us, 'cos we don't know!
Meanwhile, are something like 90% of residential boaters really living on unofficial moorings? If they are then it seems pretty likely that they are not paying Council Tax. The local councils, by ignoring the need for residential moorings, are losing out on the potential revenue, while the boaters live with the constant worry that some official might come along and evict them from the mooring.
You can listen to the item for the next week on the BBC website. Fast forward to 12 minutes into the programme.
Oh, and can someone please tell the BBC that those floaty things that were being talked about are not called "houseboats"?
ben-9
Thursday, 14 January 2010
Breaking the Ice (Part Two)
At last there is something of a thaw coming along, with a lot of the snow turning to slush. Of course, it's not that simple, as a lot of the melted snow is freezing at night and turning to black ice! But, at least, the canals are less frozen than they were, if anyone wants to get on their way.
Last week I commented on the noble efforts of Brian McGuigan breaking ice along the Macclesfield Canal to reach his customers.
During the week there has been much coverage of a completely different method of breaking ice.
A couple of bright young sparks decided to take their car for a spin along the Union Canal in Scotland!
They thought it would be a good idea to drive on the ice! Tyremarks in the covering of snow on the ice showed that they had driven along on the ice for half a mile before the inevitable happened and the ice gave way beneath them.
The two occupants escaped and fled the scene but were later arrested by police and charged with "reckless conduct". Is that an offence in England? I have not heard of it here, but maybe it should be!
I don't know how to put pictures on here and I'd probably be breaking some sort of rule if I showed a photo from another site, so here is a link to a news article with a few photos. A nice touch is the "Police - Accident" sign on the towpath. I'm not sure who it is supposed to be warning, though! Perhaps towpath walkers should slow down as they pass.
Maybe these two fruitcakes were trying for a nomination for a Darwin Award? These prestigious awards are given to those who improve the gene pool by removing themselves from it. However, as they managed to escape they would probably not be eligible.
I wonder whether a BW enforcement officer will be along soon to put a sticker on the car for not having a BW licence?
Ben Nine
Last week I commented on the noble efforts of Brian McGuigan breaking ice along the Macclesfield Canal to reach his customers.
During the week there has been much coverage of a completely different method of breaking ice.
A couple of bright young sparks decided to take their car for a spin along the Union Canal in Scotland!
They thought it would be a good idea to drive on the ice! Tyremarks in the covering of snow on the ice showed that they had driven along on the ice for half a mile before the inevitable happened and the ice gave way beneath them.
The two occupants escaped and fled the scene but were later arrested by police and charged with "reckless conduct". Is that an offence in England? I have not heard of it here, but maybe it should be!
I don't know how to put pictures on here and I'd probably be breaking some sort of rule if I showed a photo from another site, so here is a link to a news article with a few photos. A nice touch is the "Police - Accident" sign on the towpath. I'm not sure who it is supposed to be warning, though! Perhaps towpath walkers should slow down as they pass.
Maybe these two fruitcakes were trying for a nomination for a Darwin Award? These prestigious awards are given to those who improve the gene pool by removing themselves from it. However, as they managed to escape they would probably not be eligible.
I wonder whether a BW enforcement officer will be along soon to put a sticker on the car for not having a BW licence?
Ben Nine
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