How you can help mend the canal (From Northwich Guardian)

How you can help mend the canal

2:00pm Tuesday 9th October 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Gina Bebbington

A HUGE fundraising drive has been launched by the Canal and River Trust to mend the breach in the Trent and Mersey Canal.

It has already raised more than £10,500, with donations even coming in from voluntary societies and fellow charities, but the repairs will cost more than £1milliion.

The Trent and Mersey Canal Society has given £1,000 to the trust after appealing to its 200 members.

Nigel Hughes, chairman of the society, explained why the canal is so important.

He said: “This is one of the earliest canals at 245 years old and one of the trunk arterial canals, literally linking the Trent with the Mersey, as well as being part of the Cheshire Ring, a cruising waterway.

“In terms of canals with historic importance I would say this is in the top three in the country.

“It’s a beautiful waterway with some fantastic scenery on its length – in 92 miles it goes through the most diverse scenery and landscape possible.

“A huge amount of business relies heavily on this waterway and it brings a huge amount of money into England.”

Nigel is also chief executive of Birkenhead YMCA, which keeps a boat on the Trent and Mersey Canal and which has also donated £250 to the cause.

“We told a number of the lads what had happened and they decided they wanted to do something to help so they held sponsored car washes and litter picks,” he said.

“What’s important about this is that these are homeless people and therefore quite a difficult group to engage with.

“But they’ve sailed this water many times and feel it’s a safe refuge.

“They’re trying to make a contribution and that sends out a clear message to the community that this is an important cause.”

For more information about donating to the Canal and River Trust visit canalrivertrust.org.uk/breach.

The trust has also set up a text donation line to give £5 – simply text BREACH to 70800.

Comments(14)

Johnboy59 says...
9:14am Wed 10 Oct 12

Let it rot along with all the selfish miserable boaters who use it. It’s not needed and is a drain on the joke charity that is the Waterways Trust. Stop being sentimental over a system that encourages council tax dodgers and water based tramps.

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Simon1958 says...
12:41pm Wed 10 Oct 12

I was there the night Johnboy asked Mary out on a date. She lived on a canal boat in Barnton. Stunning looking woman. Unfortunately things didn't go well for Johnboy and she rejected his advances. Now he HATES anything canal related. Poor Johnboy lost more than just his true love that night, he also seemingly lost his mind.

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GrumpyBum says...
1:04pm Wed 10 Oct 12

Im intreguied to how people who have boats are council tax dodgers and tramps?
Man use them as a weekend get away and wait for it... Pay tax
The waterways are... hold your horses here... Taxed
To have a boat you need to pay... you will love this one... TAX

So please enlighten me into how one of the few things this country can be proud of, is for tax dodgers and tramps?
P.S I do not have a boat, I dont like using transport slower than on foot

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stardusziggy says...
4:28pm Wed 10 Oct 12

let the people who can afford boats pay for it! why should the rest of us subsidise their lifestyle.

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Johnboy59 says...
8:52am Thu 11 Oct 12

I am not the "jilted John", I have years of experience on the canals. Some are pleasure boats, but the tow paths and marinas are full of illegal liveaboards who do not pay council tax, but expect the local and national government to look after them when they are in trouble. In my decades on the canals I found most boaters were selfish and arrogant, and objected and even refused to pay their licences. True I now hate and detest the canal system and all its users, and would be the first to say if you want it repaired , pay for it yourselves don't expect the useless Waterways trust or government to do it . When and if it is repaired remember that it wont be long before this happens again somewhere else. The canal system is a luxury this country cant afford in its present form, if the boats that sit on the water don't pay for its upkeep, then we must loose some or all of it, and sooner rather than later!

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Simon1958 says...
9:26am Thu 11 Oct 12

stardusziggy wrote:
let the people who can afford boats pay for it! why should the rest of us subsidise their lifestyle.

I think the idea is that people who can afford to and want to help can do so by giving some money. You make it sound like it's not a voluntary contribution. Did I miss something in the article?

As for Johnboy, you seem to have a wealth of experience on the canals, and I agree the people that use them should be contributing to their upkeep, but comments like 'water based tramps' and 'tax dodgers' make your comments seem unnecessarily inflammatory, and I find it hard to take your more sensible points seriously. Unlike you I think it would be very sad for the canal system to be lost, it brings a great deal of joy to many and that is worth preserving in my opinion.

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L Byrne says...
11:22am Thu 11 Oct 12

I have no wish to get involved in another row on this site but I feel I have to make a comment.

I live fairly close to the canal but don't have any interest in boating. In my ignorance, I assume that all of the boaters pay their fees and that houseboats are not used as ways to dodge taxes.

My plea is for the people who get great pleasure out of canals by just walking by them, for the kids and adults who fish in them, for the wildlife who live in or near them and for those who earn their living from them. They are a vital part of the countryside particularly in this area.

What is appalling is that we seem to have arrived at a situation where the authorities have managed to rid themselves of financial responsibility for their upkeep so that we are dependent on charity for their survival. Who allowed that to happen?

I hope that I am wrong but I do not believe that there is a cat in hell's chance of collecting £1.5million to repair the breach in Dutton. Good luck to those that are trying.

Already the canal near where I live is becoming stagnant and beginning to smell. I suppose the boaters can steam off and do their thing elsewhere but there will be an awful mess left behind and, yet again, we will have let down the generations that come after us.

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stardusziggy says...
12:17pm Thu 11 Oct 12

the problems started in the eighties with thatcher. Usual tory philosophy,cut funding ,cut jobs, result- no maintenance, still, it will be someone elses problem. well now it is a BIG problem and it will only get worse.

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Johnboy59 says...
1:06pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Okay my last comment before I rest and enjoy the dereliction and demise of the canal system. It is very easy for trendy lefties to blame Mrs Thatcher, in truth the problems went back to formation of British Waterways in the 1950's. Like most nationalised industries the waterways couldn't be made to pay, so they were abandoned, and only minimal maintenance was carried out. It was only in the late 1960's that it was realised the system had a pleasure element. Various trusts restored things like the Cheshire Ring, Huddersfield Narrow, and the Boat lift, before responsibility was entrusted to BW. Poor management at BW saw property sold off at below market potential, and the good hard working site staff reduced.

On the private side holiday companies were formed, but in general these were and remain poorly managed and their marketing strategies are woefully inadequate, so as result there are around 35% of the holiday companies and vessels that there were 30 years ago, and they are selling products that only well off families can afford, so as result the income to the waterways has never helped revive the canals. On top of that loads of boat builders have been churning out substandard boats at an affordable price, and the number of private craft is now at an all time high, but the revenue from their licences still fails to pay for the high maintenance of the canals. If you attend any brokers you will be shocked at the poor standards that are available, and even more stunned by the prices.Where else would you pay upwards of £20k for a filthy rusting wreck, with little or no comeback against the seller.

Boaters tend not to respect the speed limits, and cause damage to a waterway designed for horse drawn boats. If you don't believe me stand at Anderton on any busy day and watch the boats ignore the speed limit and damage the bank, some of which have already collapsed in that area. The simple facts are, the system is in its third century, the costs to the charity are beyond their means, as they were beyond BW's. Governments of whatever colour cannot be expected to poor money into a preservation society, (they don't for the successful railway societies), just to keep a few hobby boaters happy. Successive governments have quite rightly ignored the plight of the canals, and why? Because they are of no importance!

Okay my last comment before I rest and enjoy the dereliction and demise of the canal system. It is very easy for trendy lefties to blame Mrs Thatcher, in truth the problems went back to formation of British Waterways in the 1950's. Like most nationalised industries the waterways couldn't be made to pay, so they were abandoned, and only minimal maintenance was carried out. It was only in the late 1960's that it was realised the system had a pleasure element. Various trusts restored things like the Cheshire Ring, Huddersfield Narrow, and the Boat lift, before responsibility was entrusted to BW. Poor management at BW saw property sold off at below market potential, and the good hard working site staff reduced. On the private side holiday companies were formed, but in general these were and remain poorly managed and their marketing strategies are woefully inadequate, so as result there are around 35% of the holiday companies and vessels that there were 30 years ago, and they are selling products that only well off families can afford, so as result the income to the waterways has never helped revive the canals. On top of that loads of boat builders have been churning out substandard boats at an affordable price, and the number of private craft is now at an all time high, but the revenue from their licences still fails to pay for the high maintenance of the canals. If you attend any brokers you will be shocked at the poor standards that are available, and even more stunned by the prices.Where else would you pay upwards of £20k for a filthy rusting wreck, with little or no comeback against the seller. Boaters tend not to respect the speed limits, and cause damage to a waterway designed for horse drawn boats. If you don't believe me stand at Anderton on any busy day and watch the boats ignore the speed limit and damage the bank, some of which have already collapsed in that area. The simple facts are, the system is in its third century, the costs to the charity are beyond their means, as they were beyond BW's. Governments of whatever colour cannot be expected to poor money into a preservation society, (they don't for the successful railway societies), just to keep a few hobby boaters happy. Successive governments have quite rightly ignored the plight of the canals, and why? Because they are of no importance! Johnboy59

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L Byrne says...
6:08pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Johnboy

I see that you have got it in for the canal boaters and I have to agree with you about some aspects. Many of them do a lot of damage to the banks as they move at excessive speeds and it really cheeses me off when I wish them the time of day and get blanked.

But what about other can users like myself? I have just returned from walking my dog along a very pleasant stretch on this autumnal evening and found it sad that that pleasure may not be available to me and thousands of others in the future.

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stardusziggy says...
11:16am Fri 12 Oct 12

Johnboy59 wrote:
Okay my last comment before I rest and enjoy the dereliction and demise of the canal system. It is very easy for trendy lefties to blame Mrs Thatcher, in truth the problems went back to formation of British Waterways in the 1950's. Like most nationalised industries the waterways couldn't be made to pay, so they were abandoned, and only minimal maintenance was carried out. It was only in the late 1960's that it was realised the system had a pleasure element. Various trusts restored things like the Cheshire Ring, Huddersfield Narrow, and the Boat lift, before responsibility was entrusted to BW. Poor management at BW saw property sold off at below market potential, and the good hard working site staff reduced.

On the private side holiday companies were formed, but in general these were and remain poorly managed and their marketing strategies are woefully inadequate, so as result there are around 35% of the holiday companies and vessels that there were 30 years ago, and they are selling products that only well off families can afford, so as result the income to the waterways has never helped revive the canals. On top of that loads of boat builders have been churning out substandard boats at an affordable price, and the number of private craft is now at an all time high, but the revenue from their licences still fails to pay for the high maintenance of the canals. If you attend any brokers you will be shocked at the poor standards that are available, and even more stunned by the prices.Where else would you pay upwards of £20k for a filthy rusting wreck, with little or no comeback against the seller.

Boaters tend not to respect the speed limits, and cause damage to a waterway designed for horse drawn boats. If you don't believe me stand at Anderton on any busy day and watch the boats ignore the speed limit and damage the bank, some of which have already collapsed in that area. The simple facts are, the system is in its third century, the costs to the charity are beyond their means, as they were beyond BW's. Governments of whatever colour cannot be expected to poor money into a preservation society, (they don't for the successful railway societies), just to keep a few hobby boaters happy. Successive governments have quite rightly ignored the plight of the canals, and why? Because they are of no importance!

maybe they will be of importance when the locks on the weaver collapse and flood northwich.

[quote][p][bold]Johnboy59[/bold] wrote: Okay my last comment before I rest and enjoy the dereliction and demise of the canal system. It is very easy for trendy lefties to blame Mrs Thatcher, in truth the problems went back to formation of British Waterways in the 1950's. Like most nationalised industries the waterways couldn't be made to pay, so they were abandoned, and only minimal maintenance was carried out. It was only in the late 1960's that it was realised the system had a pleasure element. Various trusts restored things like the Cheshire Ring, Huddersfield Narrow, and the Boat lift, before responsibility was entrusted to BW. Poor management at BW saw property sold off at below market potential, and the good hard working site staff reduced. On the private side holiday companies were formed, but in general these were and remain poorly managed and their marketing strategies are woefully inadequate, so as result there are around 35% of the holiday companies and vessels that there were 30 years ago, and they are selling products that only well off families can afford, so as result the income to the waterways has never helped revive the canals. On top of that loads of boat builders have been churning out substandard boats at an affordable price, and the number of private craft is now at an all time high, but the revenue from their licences still fails to pay for the high maintenance of the canals. If you attend any brokers you will be shocked at the poor standards that are available, and even more stunned by the prices.Where else would you pay upwards of £20k for a filthy rusting wreck, with little or no comeback against the seller. Boaters tend not to respect the speed limits, and cause damage to a waterway designed for horse drawn boats. If you don't believe me stand at Anderton on any busy day and watch the boats ignore the speed limit and damage the bank, some of which have already collapsed in that area. The simple facts are, the system is in its third century, the costs to the charity are beyond their means, as they were beyond BW's. Governments of whatever colour cannot be expected to poor money into a preservation society, (they don't for the successful railway societies), just to keep a few hobby boaters happy. Successive governments have quite rightly ignored the plight of the canals, and why? Because they are of no importance![/p][/quote]maybe they will be of importance when the locks on the weaver collapse and flood northwich. stardusziggy

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Johnboy59 says...
1:11pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Would not effect me , so not important to me, Britain does not need a ditch network this size, let the people who use pay for and manage it! or let it rot!

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stardusziggy says...
4:45pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Johnboy59 wrote:
Would not effect me , so not important to me, Britain does not need a ditch network this size, let the people who use pay for and manage it! or let it rot!

very typical right wing, pull the ladder up attitude. as for the dogwalkers ,sorry you wont be able to terrorise the wildlife and befoul the towpaths , having contributed nothing unlike the boaties and anglers.

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GOFFY says...
9:13pm Sat 13 Oct 12

If my memory serves correctly the Canal and River Trust used to be named British Waterways if that is the case, where have all the millions gone from the British Waterways coffers. As for the comments by Johnboy59 such diatribe should be ignored because they have no relevance to a serious situation. Whether we like it or not the canal system is part of our national heritage, and helped this country to greatness before during and after the industrial revolution.

Goffy

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How you can help mend the canal (From Northwich Guardian)

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