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Wide Beam Class War


Tim Lewis

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From today's Times

 

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/wideboys-shatter-the-calm-of-canal-living-8tqrp0zjm

 

 

 

The tranquillity of life on Britain’s waterways is under threat as canal boaters fight a “class war” with larger, trendy vessels that are invading the space of traditional narrow boats, according to campaigners.

Wide-beam boats, which are twice the width of narrow boats, have become increasingly popular on the London and Manchester networks thanks to their extra room for designer kitchens, bathrooms with roll-top baths, and giant TVs, sofas and double beds.

New wide-beams can cost well over £100,000, compared with about £70,000 for the most expensive narrow boat. Boaters have grumbled that wide-beams have proliferated on waterways intended for narrower vessels, saying they do not have to pay more for a licence, take up more room at moorings and cause traffic at locks as only one can fit in at a time, instead of two narrow boats.

As they displace more water, wide beams can also disturb moorings if they move too quickly.

Ian Shacklock, chairman of the Friends of Regent’s Canal in London, said: “There’s a class war. It’s a matter of space. These things were never an issue 20 years ago because there was so much more space. There’s such tension now because of the congestion.

“It’s a snobbery thing. People are competing on the canal and there is tension between the different types of boat. Some people have money to throw around but there isn’t the space.”

After complaints, the Canal and River Trust, which issues licences, has agreed to introduce up to a 20 per cent surcharge next year for wide-beams. About 23 per cent of owners nationally use their canal boats as a home, according to the trust, a figure that rises to more than 60 per cent in London. There are about 35,000 boats registered with the trust.

Collingwood boat builders in Liverpool said that the demand for luxury wide-beams had doubled in the past decade, having made 74 in 2010 and 155 last year. There are four main canal systems that are wide enough for these boats: London and south England, East Anglia and the Severn and Trent waterways.

Chris Leah, 67, head of the Wooden Canal Boat Society in Ashton-under-Lyne, near Manchester, said: “You hear complaints about wide-beams taking up all the space and blocking the canal. The big problem is moorings, it’s getting so crowded there.”

Jonas Roebuck, 33, a sound designer who moors Grow Beautifully near Victoria Park in east London, said: “When you are inside you do not know you are on the water. There’s so much more space. I have got a corner sofa, a big kitchen and a double bed.”

Allan Salmon, 37, a musician who owns The Freya and Josephine, said there was a “stigma” against boaters like him. “It’s the closest thing possible to living in a flat. You can have ten people round for dinner and you can properly do yoga that would be a bit more challenging on a narrowboat.”

 

 

 

 

 

Tim

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Why do we have a continual perpetuation of this divisive nonsense? Overcrowding and competition for space on the waterways may be one of the reasons for a clash between boaters on smaller and bigger boats but it's certainly not the only reason. If that were really the case then why wouldn't there be a tension between owners of 45ft narrowboats and 70ft narrowboats? The latter take up far more mooring space.

 

I've been living on my widebeam since 2005 when there really weren't the same overcrowding problems that we have now, but even back then I used to get snide remarks from some narrowboat owners - some on here and some face to face on the river Thames and GU. So I think it's time that some narrowboaters were a bit more honest about their own petty personal anger and the reasons behind it.

Edited by blackrose
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I wonder who supplied the journalist with those prices - assuming that they refer to new boats.

"Divisive nonsense" is perhaps an unjust criticism; the piece, though fairly brief, presents both pro's and con's of widebeam canal boats in a fair way - note Jonas Roebuck's glowing praise.

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Next we'll have panic buying of wide beam boats!

 

On the GU, it makes no difference whether the mooring is taken by a widebeam or 2 narrowboats breasted up - sometimes more.  In 2013 I went with a group of boaters down to Limehouse to go on a Thames convoy.  From virtually Berkhampstead down to Victoria Park, all the decent moorings [especially around bridges with road access] were taken up by either breasted narrowboats or wide beams, with only the lock landing bollards available.  This has resulted in my choice to never go down this canal again.  It has become a linear housing estate.

 

Those craft based on just "fattening up" a narrowboat look pretty butt ugly to me and I much prefer the classic lines of a Dutch barge or similar.  There's no doubt that the space allows for much more "normal" living and so be it. There's more snobbery amongst narrowboaters to knock any divisions between narrow and wide into a cocked hat.  JUST KEEP THE WIDE BEAMS OFF INAPPROPRIATE WATERS - such as the North Oxford.

 

  • Greenie 1
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Think their quoted prices are a bit out.

 

I wonder where you can get a new fully fitted narrowboat from a top notch builder for £70k these days. If anyone knows, please let me know!

 

Most new fully fitted widebeams are considerably more than £100k as well.

 

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1 hour ago, Athy said:

I wonder who supplied the journalist with those prices - assuming that they refer to new boats.

"Divisive nonsense" is perhaps an unjust criticism; the piece, though fairly brief, presents both pro's and con's of widebeam canal boats in a fair way - note Jonas Roebuck's glowing praise.

I wish we could have found a new upmarket custom built nb for anywhere near £70K three years ago!

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2 hours ago, blackrose said:

Why do we have a continual perpetuation of this divisive nonsense? Overcrowding and competition for space on the waterways may be one of the reasons for a clash between boaters on smaller and bigger boats but it's certainly not the only reason. If that were really the case then why wouldn't there be a tension between owners of 45ft narrowboats and 70ft narrowboats? The latter take up far more mooring space.

 

I've been living on my widebeam since 2005 when there really weren't the same overcrowding problems that we have now, but even back then I used to get snide remarks from some narrowboat owners - some on here and some face to face on the river Thames and GU. So I think it's time that some narrowboaters were a bit more honest about their own petty personal anger and the reasons behind it.

 

Having followed you for some time I'm sure most members would agree that if all wide-beam owners behaved and were like you this problem/argument wouldn't even exist - lets ignore that big town inside the M25 cos they're all odd anyway and as with the pubs they love being squashed together ?

  • Greenie 3
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1 hour ago, Mike Todd said:

I wish we could have found a new upmarket custom built nb for anywhere near £70K three years ago!

Quite: we paid more than that for a (fairly up-market) 45-footer in 2006!

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51 minutes ago, Halsey said:

❤️

 

 

Why can't we "like" etc moderators posts

'Cos they're a world apart and might find the attentions of us lesser mortals distasteful....

(Hides and changes name....)

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28 minutes ago, Athy said:

No, we don't all live in the Fens.:D

And some lovely places as Google tells me -

several NBs up a creek, steps down to One's boat, large georgian hise, pretty church (defuncr organ) -- quite nice really...

  • Greenie 1
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