Please explain why your log of cc'ers movements are still not always correct? Last year you told us a new system would be put in place therefore correctly logging boaters movements but this system is just as ineffective. Boaters ate repeatedly having to justify their movements when in actual fact you are the ones with the inaccurate information. Why is this? What are your plans to make amends to your system?
The towpath is patrolled on a daily basis by a number of Towpath Rangers who travel on pedal cycles and “sight” each and every boat. These sightings are carried out on a very frequent basis so we are able to accurately plot boat movements. The sightings are recorded within an iPad app which downloads overnight to allow us to view the boats last recorded sighting the following morning. The boats precise location is marked by its Easting and Northing position on the Canal or River which is very accurate. If a customer is being asked to justify movements it’s likely that they are not compliant with their Terms and Conditions. We will investigate with the customer why that is and offer assistance and advice where we can. It may be that it’s a matter of education and interpretation. Nothing is perfect but we believe that the system we operate is highly effective on most occasions.
Please can you tell us your future plans for vegetation management and dredging? There seems to be many issues with not enough mooring places/spaces, which has been widely reported by yourselves, canal organisations and the waterways press, yet there would be plenty more places if vegetation was cut back and if the water was deep enough, if you could actually see the towpath in some areas it would provide much more space. This also has an impact on navigation as it makes it very difficult in some areas to get one narrowboat through let alone a widebeam or to pass another boat. You're spot dredging isn't going to make much difference as this is not widespread enough.
We have five years strategy with more works prioritised for Oxford and Grand Union Leicester. The offside vegetation has been put into a 5 year programme, unfortunately since this programme was agreed, I’ve been made aware that the budget for vegetation works has been cut so the original plan will have a backlog which will need to be delivered next winter. So for this winter, we will be cutting the offside at the following locations: Grand Union Canal Welford Arm Leicester Line Welford to Kilby Bridge Oxford Canal Napton to Bridge 30 Brinklow. This is a total of 75km Much of the woody vegetation on the towpath canal wall has been cut last winter, however we have been made aware that some areas were missed by our contractors. Our length inspection team is using a mapping system to record these areas over the next few months so we will be able to target these areas once the information is available to deliver to the contract manager. CRT has a Hydrographic Survey team which carries out a rolling 7 or 8 year programme of surveys of the mainline channel of the network. This team determines if the surveyed channels are compliant with a “Dredging Prioritisation Trigger” (DPT) box, set to allow passage of two of the widest and deepest craft that can navigate any given waterway based on published maximum dimensions. This data is then used to help inform the Trust’s dredging priorities, together with other sources of information (such as feedback from members of the public).There is no current information on our webpages regarding planned dredging works, however, we are able to provide you with some localised information on what is planned around the south-east of our network: • With regards to the Oxford Canal, there is a planned project to spot dredge between Enslow and Upper Wolvercote in the next few years (the scheduled date is open to change dependent on the changing priorities around the network) • With regards to the southern end of the Grand Union, the following dredging projects are planned over the next few years (the scheduled date is open to change dependent on the changing priorities around the network) o Near Bridge 18, Muscott Mill Bridge o Near Bridge 24, Weedon Road o Lock 49 to 51 o Near Cassiobury Park o South of Bridge 68 & near Bridge 72 o Locations between Bridge 81A Campbell Park and Bridge 93A Bletcham Way • This year, the following locations along the southern end of the Grand Union are being dredged: o Locations between Bridge 108 Chelmscote and Lock 27 Leighton Lock o Locations between Lock 29 Church Lock and Lock 30 Slapton Lock o By Bridge 51, Blisworth
The maintenance across the whole canal corridor seems to have been forgotten about and I have seen a significant decrease in all areas of maintenance since you transferred over to a trust. In some areas lack of maintenance is putting boaters at risk due to dangerous issues eg. Holes in towpath, strengthening bars protruding from the canal edge, sunken boats being left for months on end, broken lock gates, trees growing out of the towpath making the bank unstable. Please could you tell us what the future plans are to maintain the area to an acceptable standard? Please could you train your ground staff to moor boats up correctly? The majority of the time they need to be moored up again.
The canal is 200 years old and has for quite some time had various defects that require attention. Indeed it does sometimes feel that as quick as we repair the worst of the current defects another asset deteriorates. Since becoming a Trust the teams in the South East have been as busy as they have ever been. The Waterway Customer Operations teams are delivering the same level of pre planned maintenance as they always did to the same frequency. An annualised hours contract has been agreed that provides an extend availability of staff on site and cover 7 days a week. This was an efficiency that was delivered at no extra cost. The budget for offside vegetation has increased and has been delivered every year. The number of stoppages delivered by our Construction Teams each year has if anything increased. This continues to be the case. The plant and equipment for bank protection and towpath works seems to be in use for much of the year. Also increasing is the volunteer activities and the contribution they bring. A great example of this is the Northampton Arm. I can honestly say I have never seen it look as good as it does currently. Volunteering has undoubtedly been a great success.We do appreciate your observations and value the constructive feed back that we receive from many of our visitors. Indeed this feedback is given careful consideration and is frequently a deciding factor in prioritising works. Examples recently would be the dredging at Leighton and the grouting of the locks on the GUS. If there are specific instances of defects that you feel are a high priority we will always be happy to hear from you and even if it is not possible to undertake repairs straight away we will be able to include the defect in the list of works to plan. We are sure we will never be in a position to state that everything on the South East Waterway is in an ideal condition but we can say that the team will strive to deliver the high standards we aspire to and that you have a right to expect.
Could you please explain why there is a threat from the government to withdraw their funding and how this came about? Why has this come about? Why is boating barely mentioned in your 60 page report? It seems as though towpath users are more important than boaters. Why were canals built? Have you forgotten the mainstay of the system and those who contribute more finance than any other users?
Our current Grant agreement with Defra provides the Trust with approximately £50 million each year until March 2027. However there is no certainty over what comes after that date. So this is not a new threat, but it does mean that our performance between now and 2022 - when we make our next funding submission - will determine how effective we are in convincing Government to continue our Grant agreement beyond March 2027. As we have been unable to clarify with you which report you are referring to, we are assuming that you refer to the recent 'Waterways & Wellbeing, First Outcomes' report. In order to build a case for ongoing public funding, it is essential that the Trust demonstrates the benefits that the waterways provide to the 400 million towpath users who visit our waterways each year. As the Trust increases it ability to demonstrate measurable outcomes from the multipurpose nature of our waterways it will increase the ability to persuasively influence statutory and voluntary funders and partners.The canals and rivers are an asset for many millions of visitors and we strive to provide an enriching environment for all.
‘Given the varying standards of work by differing contractors…is CRT willing and able to re-introduce the equivalent of a clerk-of-works function to ensure contractors’ compliance with contracts and standards of work required on the waterways?’
It would be helpful to understand what contract the varying standards of work refers to. Under the Fountains contract the specifications of grass cut vary for example from stretch to stretch depending on what asset management have stipulated in terms of the local management regime. Operational Contracts Team are responsible for the trusts main national contracts monitored and managed under NEC3 terms and conditions. Fountains - vegetation management, Vinci - operational buildings maintenance, Biffa – Waste, AMCO - mechanical and Electrical maintenance, James Fisher – Diving services.The team is resourced by 6 contract Managers and 11 contract supervisors- 1 per region who support their contract manager in maintaining contract compliance, specification adherence, value and standards. Major and minor civils works are managed by a project who is an acting clerk of works.
My question would be for enlightenment on vegetation management policy in the region.
Please visit our webpage which has general info on veg management. https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/about-us/our-work/maintaining-our- waterways/vegetation-management If there are any specific questions that you would like answered, our Environment Manager will be attending the surgery this evening
What resources are the CRT committing to the Daventry canal project and how does that compare to the MK link? Will CRT be managing the Daventry Canal Arm?
The Trust is committing internal resource (staff time and expertise) to support the development of both the Daventry Canal Arm and the Bedford & MK Waterway Park. The Trust would consider managing the Daventry Canal Arm once it has been completed but this has not been agreed. Will the Daventry Canal arm cause any disruption to Navigation during construction and will there be any adverse effects to navigation or tow path once it is open?
There is likely to be some disruption to the navigation and towpath at the point where the new arm is connected to the canal. However the Trust will work very closely with all parties to minimise the impact of the development on boaters and towpath users.
Do the CRT have sufficient resources to run and maintain the canal network in our area and what is the priority list.
Canal & River Trust is a charity and there will never be sufficient resources to do everything we would like to do to maintain the 200yr old canal network, which is why we are increasingly using volunteers and looking for new sources of income. There are four restorations/new canal developments, which are the priority projects in the south east region: Wendover Arm, Buckingham Arm, Daventry Canal Arm & Bedford & MK Waterway Park.
As the proposed canal arm is within the parish of Daventry Town, Daventry Town Council respectfully ask to be included at any partner meetings that consider the proposals and long-term sustainability of the project.
Vicky Martin & Tav Kazmi (SE Waterway Manager) to pick up in surgery
What has CRT done in support of the Daventry District Council’s “Paint Mean Poo” Campaign? It was promised last year that CRT would widely publicise the problem of dog fouling.
CRT has been working with Daventry District Council in support of this campaign. We have given permission for this to take place on our property and have been supporting this campaign via our social media communications.
What if anything has the Partnership done to enhance the cruising experience through MK? Is it the Partnership intentions to have MK as a linear boat park for those boats that do not have a home mooring?
The Partnership has prioritised the development of a 5yr Destination Management Plan for Milton Keynes last year with the aim of improving the boater and visitor experience. Key actions from the DMP include: the installation of 50 mooring rings to improve boating infrastructure (BP17/18 action) and a 5yr vegetation management plan. The DMP has also identified the need for a strategic moorings review in MK and efforts have been made to recruit volunteer towpath rangers to take gather the necessary sightings data to take this forward. Whilst a few volunteers have been recruited in MK, many more volunteers are needed to help gather the evidence base upon which any future decisons can be made. If any one would like to help assist with this, please let Sonny King, Volunteer Development Co-ordinator know.
Could you please confirm when you will start work to repair the towpath and embankment through Thrupp?
The slip at Thrupp is subject to a regular review by our length inspection team and a level and movement monitoring by the engineering team. The next set of level monitoring is due to be undertaken in October 2017. Following the initial movement a repeat inspection of the canal embankment was undertaken by our geotechnical team and we are following their recommendation. On completion of the next levelling exercise we will also engaging specialist to undertake leakage detection and following the outcome of the leakage detection boreholes to inform a design. At the moment we are monitoring the slip but it is not currently within the works programme, as the slip is not at any immediate risk of failure and we require further information to inform the design process.
Yes, we would appreciate a site visit, to demonstrate the holes which have appeared along the bank throughout Thrupp which are now a health and safety risk through Thrupp which is a popular spot for walkers, and boaters alike.
Julie Sharman (Director of Asset Management) is attending and will pick up in surgery