200 metres of canal close to Gas Street Basin are being drained to find a leak from a historic canal aqueduct that few boaters know is even there! The aqueduct was originally constructed to carry a now disused railway under the canal.
Canal and River Trust Update on 12th March 2015:
Repairs have been completed and the navigation is now open.
A major problem has developed on one of the Canal & River Trust’s (CRT) busiest and most popular waterways in visitor terms. A serious leak has been discovered near the aqueduct which spans Holliday Street – itself a busy thoroughfare – on the Worcester & Birmingham Canal right in the centre of Birmingham.
The site is in the middle of the redeveloped area of the city between Worcester Bar – popularly known as Gas Street Basin – and The Mailbox; a tourist and business area of apartment blocks and restaurants. A number of passenger boats operate through the site – although they can take trips in the other direction – and it is a popular visitor mooring area for passing boats, particularly holiday hire craft.
The canal is closed and being drained, once fish have been rescued, between Bridge 88 at Granville Street and Worcester Bar Stop Lock, the junction with the BCN Main Line, until further notice. The work started on Wednesday but was delayed due to a faulty seal on a safety gate. The Canal and River Trust said it had made “every effort” to contact people trying to use the route during half-term.
Hayley Harper, from the Canal & River Trust, said: “The leak appears to be quite significant so we need to know as soon as possible exactly where it’s coming from. The only way we can know for sure is to drain the canal and thoroughly inspect the aqueduct. I can’t remember the last time we drained this part of the canal so it will also be interesting to see what other changes have occurred to the canal bed as well as finding out exactly what has caused this leak.”
Interviewed on local television, during a fish rescue preceding the closure, CRT operations director Vince Moran said that the waterway could be closed for some weeks whilst the extent of the problem was established and repairs undertaken.
Thanks to Harry Arnold and Waterway Images for some of this report and images.
