Winter stoppages - CRT website updates

[Grassman]

 

How quickly do CRT update their winter stoppages notices? When a planned one (rather than an emergency one) re-opens do they announce it or just leave it stating it's original dates? If one is going to over run do they always tend to update the fact prior to the stated opening date?  I know they update the information when one opens earlier than expected.

 

The reason I ask is because tomorrow we are going down the Wolverhampton 21. The CRT site says Locks 14 & 16  were due to re-open last Friday (13th) so I'm assuming it is now open, but I don't want to get there and find them closed and us stuck in the middle of the flight so I was just wondering from you more experienced winter cruisers how reliable the information usually is please, and do they always just leave the dates as they were? I.e can I safely assume they are now open?

[David Mack]

If in doubt ring CRT and ask for confirmation from the local team.

[MoominPapa]

2 hours ago, Grassman said:

 

How quickly do CRT update their winter stoppages notices? When a planned one (rather than an emergency one) re-opens do they announce it or just leave it stating it's original dates? If one is going to over run do they always tend to update the fact prior to the stated opening date?  I know they update the information when one opens earlier than expected.

 

The reason I ask is because tomorrow we are going down the Wolverhampton 21. The CRT site says Locks 14 & 16  were due to re-open last Friday (13th) so I'm assuming it is now open, but I don't want to get there and find them closed and us stuck in the middle of the flight so I was just wondering from you more experienced winter cruisers how reliable the information usually is please, and do they always just leave the dates as they were? I.e can I safely assume they are now open?

Very slowly. The stoppages for the Shroppie still include Wheaton Aston lock and blue-green algae in both reservoirs, even though contacting CRT weeks ago confirmed that none of them apply now.

 

MP.

[PaulJ]

1 hour ago, David Mack said:

If in doubt ring CRT and ask for confirmation from the local team.

I do like an optimist. I still try this every now again for the hell of it (Thursday before last to be exact as I didnt want to drive 150 miles to find  lock 88 L&L still shut)

 And no-they couldnt tell me.

[matty40s]

They can't tell you, you cant talk to the local team, and the person answering the 0303 number probably thinks the Wolverhampton 21 is an episode of Peaky Blinders.

 

After plenty of winter cruising , the only way is to go look yourself , or be very lucky with a passing CRT bod.

[TheBiscuits]

2 hours ago, Grassman said:

I don't want to get there and find them closed and us stuck in the middle of the flight

It's quite normal for CRT to padlock the top and bottom lock of a flight if they are working in the middle of it.  If you can do one lock you should be able to do the rest!

[matty40s]

23 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

It's quite normal for CRT to padlock the top and bottom lock of a flight if they are working in the middle of it.  If you can do one lock you should be able to do the rest!

He he, ho ho, the true spirit of comedy genius.

[alan_fincher]

33 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

It's quite normal for CRT to padlock the top and bottom lock of a flight if they are working in the middle of it.  If you can do one lock you should be able to do the rest!

Normal, but by no means always the case, unfortunately.

In my personal experience there is seldom any point in phoning the generic CRT number to enquire about progress of stoppages, as all the operative does is go to the web-site and read off what it says, (even if what it says is "for latest information telephone CRT"!!!).

[matty40s]

I arrived a stoppage last winter that was due to open on the Friday.......it looked far from ready.

On Friday morning I spoke to the contractors who said no chance, might be Monday...or Tuesday due to the mortar not drying. Heavy rain all day and more forecast for the weekend. It would be down to CRT though, who were coming down for a handover late morning .

Handover came, spoke to the onsite CRT manager who agreed with the contractors, definitely not open until at least Monday so I might as well leave boat on the lock landing and come back first thing Monday.

 

Walking up towpath back from station first thing Monday, I saw several boats that had been stuck the other side of the lock before the weekend.

Turned out that Saturdays CRT duty manager had decided to open the lock.

Monday saw water pouring from the newly mortared brickwork which you could drive your finger into. 

It was shut again for re-mortaring at a later date.

 

So dont believe anyone , if it's open,  it's open, probably...

[Alway Swilby]

20 hours ago, Grassman said:

 

How quickly do CRT update their winter stoppages notices? When a planned one (rather than an emergency one) re-opens do they announce it or just leave it stating it's original dates? If one is going to over run do they always tend to update the fact prior to the stated opening date?  I know they update the information when one opens earlier than expected.

 

The reason I ask is because tomorrow we are going down the Wolverhampton 21. The CRT site says Locks 14 & 16  were due to re-open last Friday (13th) so I'm assuming it is now open, but I don't want to get there and find them closed and us stuck in the middle of the flight so I was just wondering from you more experienced winter cruisers how reliable the information usually is please, and do they always just leave the dates as they were? I.e can I safely assume they are now open?

I reckon that if the stoppage is completed on time then they don't report it. Sometimes you see email alerts that say such and such a stoppage has finished three days early and the canal is now open. Other times you see emails saying that there have been problems and the opening is delayed.

We came up the Claydon flight on the S Oxford on Friday late morning, it had just opened and had been due to open at 1600 that day. There wasn't a notice about it.

[PaulJ]

1 minute ago, Alway Swilby said:

I reckon that if the stoppage is completed on time then they don't report it. Sometimes you see email alerts that say such and such a stoppage has finished three days early and the canal is now open. Other times you see emails saying that there have been problems and the opening is delayed.

We came up the Claydon flight on the S Oxford on Friday late morning, it had just opened and had been due to open at 1600 that day. There wasn't a notice about it.

^^^ Exactly how I see it.

Must have been right behind you as came up about 2pm on Friday ?

[Grassman]

Thanks for all your replies. 

 

A lot of other places I'd have risked it but with this one I didn't fancy getting stuck in Wolverhampton, hence me asking the question. Anyway, I managed to get hold of a CRT person this morning who confirmed that they were open so we got on fine going through the flight today.

 

 

[Alway Swilby]

On 16/12/2019 at 14:27, PaulJ said:

^^^ Exactly how I see it.

Must have been right behind you as came up about 2pm on Friday ?

I think you might have moored in front of us at the top of the flight?

[PaulJ]

4 hours ago, Alway Swilby said:

I think you might have moored in front of us at the top of the flight?

Did think about it cos I was bludy freezing but as there was still daylight without the wet stuff I carried onto Fenny Compton ☺