Survey shows demand for pre-bookable moorings moorings as an option in London

[Ray T]

8 September 2016

 

SURVEY SHOWS DEMAND FOR PRE-BOOKABLE MOORINGS AS AN OPTION IN LONDON

 

Over the summer the Canal & River Trust carried out a survey to gauge the level of demand for boaters wanting to visit London’s bustling waterways together with their interest in being able to pre-book a short-stay mooring ahead of their arrival. The charity has now collated the 1,400 responses and will be using the results to inform its mooring strategy for the capital.

 

The survey showed that perceived pressure on mooring space was putting some boaters off visiting London. Of the 27% of respondents who hadn’t visited the capital by boat, 85% said it was because they weren’t certain they’d find a place to moor. There was appetite for an increased range of mooring options, with 59% of all respondents saying they’d consider paying for a reserved mooring.

 

The results showed:

· 73% had visited London by boat, of which 45% had visited in 2016 and 18% in 2015. 10% had visited before 2010.

· Most visiting boaters moored on general towpath moorings (64%) or visitor moorings (63%), with 14% stopping on paid private moorings.

· 59% of respondents said they would consider paying for a reserved mooring, with most boaters saying they’d pay £10 a night.

· When thinking of cruising into central London, having a safe and secure place to moor was important to 92%, while having a guaranteed place to moor was important to 74%. 63% wanted to moor close to local services, attractions or transport links while 50% thought it was important to moor close to boat facilities.

 

Matthew Symonds, boating strategy & engagement manager at Canal & River Trust, said: “We’ve had a great response to the survey and I’m pleased that boaters have got in touch to share their views, both positive and negative, of boating in the capital. Our job is to manage the finite space on the canals so that all boaters have a fair chance of finding somewhere to moor up, and in popular places like parts of London this becomes even more important. It looks like being able to guarantee a mooring spot will give many boaters peace of mind and encourage them to visit. Taking this into account we’re planning to trial pre-bookable short-stay mooring spots at Rembrandt Gardens which will begin later in the year. We will be announcing more details soon.

 

“We’ve also had a lot of feedback on how we can improve boating in London, and I’d like to thank the 923 boaters who shared their thoughts. It’s no surprise to see that boaters want to see more facilities, and we’re doing what we can to find suitable places to put them. Boaters also want to see more mooring spaces and rings and we’ve worked hard to get funding to install around 3,500m of rings over the past two years, creating or improving around 195 mooring spots. We will continue looking for opportunities like this. Also high on the list were requests to reduce overstaying and better enforcement of the rules. We’re going through the comments carefully and they will prove really useful in the development of our wider London mooring strategy, which seeks to meet the needs of boaters and others who enjoy these historic, popular waterways.”

 

The Trust carried out the survey between Friday 30 June and Friday 26 August 2016. The Trust will also be carrying out further engagement work including surveys of boaters and other stakeholders in London over the coming months to help inform the wider London mooring strategy.

 

ENDS

 

For further media requests please contact:

Fran Read, national press officer, Canal & River Trust

m 07796 610 427 e fran.read@canalrivertrust.org.uk

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Fran Read

National Press Officer

 

M 07796 610 427

Canal & River Trust, Toll House, Delamere Terrace, London, W2 6ND

Twitter: @CRTComms

 

[matty40s]

I thought they had been trialling Rembrandt Gardens already?? Or was Mathews comment just rehashed from a previous statement??

[Jambo]

Yep it's been going for well over a year now, possibly closer to two. I guess the trial is the paying £10 a night part?

 

I only hope that any bookable moorings are additional, not repurposing of existing VMs.

[BlueStringPudding]

Oh blimey. It'll end up rolled out elsewhere across the network: paid-for pre-booked moorings at the expense of free visitor mooring space. As if they'll build more.

 

I can't help but wonder if CRT did the survey in order to get the excuse they needed to make visiting boaters pay at the point of use. It's then got to be policed too. Any excuse to make a buck on top of what we already pay for licenses etc. All to the detriment of boaters who can't afford to pay per night or can't book ahead. *sigh*

Edited September 8, 2016 by BlueStringPudding

[MtB]

Oh blimey. It'll end up rolled out elsewhere across the network: paid-for pre-booked moorings at the expense of free visitor mooring space. As if they'll build more. Any excuse to make a buck on top of what we already pay for licenses etc. All to the detriment of boaters who can't afford to pay per night or can't book ahead. *sigh*

 

 

The next step will be, naturally, booking on arrival...

[matty40s]

Also makes a mockery of their 'extended stay' charge which you cannot prebook ......

[Mike Todd]

Yep it's been going for well over a year now, possibly closer to two. I guess the trial is the paying £10 a night part?

 

I only hope that any bookable moorings are additional, not repurposing of existing VMs.

Rembrandt Gardens (which we have used a couple of times) has been an interesting trial on a very small scale. It only accommodates a couple of boats, only one of which can be widebeam (as I recall). The booking system changed from the initial experiment. I was more than a little disappointed that the initial approach was dropped seemingly at short notice as the lady running was very customer-focused and not office based. The current system is a bit clunky - we lost out one time because of a rather rigid approach but the second time I sent the email at one minute past midnight on Jan 01! I really wanted it to attend a meeting in London over several days.

 

The scheme is also very specific about the slots - it would be better to book slightly shorter ones up to a limit. But that will require a support system like that run by most hire fleets - more sophisticated than Rembrandt Gardens is currently!

 

The current scheme is also, I suspect deliberately, less than easy to book in order to avoid people over-booking what is a minuscule facility. However, people wanting to arrange their holidays well in advance need to be able to do so without charging through London without an overnight stop.

 

The survey really holds out the hope for something on a much larger scale. I certainly supported it but can see that there will be non-trivial issue to be faced. First off all, there are currently not many free spaces anywhere near what can be described as central London. There are stretches but the neighbours might object - how about putting in rings along the Regents Park stretch! It is likely that any new spaces reservable for visitors would impact on the longer term stayers - quite a few of whom stretch the CC rules to elastic limits. (No, don't assume I am getting at them, just admitting that there are other stakeholders than myself)

 

One place that would be good to be able to book is Paddington Basin but I am not sure about the ability of CaRT to do this as the ownership issues are a tad complex I believe.

 

I do hope that they find a way forward that does not alienate too many people but also makes London a more attractive visitor destination.

[Jambo]

I believe the canal through Regents Park is listed in some way and additional moorings there are considered unlikely. Also the speed that the trip boats go through there would make mooring there a rough experience to say the least. There are a fair number of spots through London that could be dredged / have mooring rings added though.

[mark99]

I guess the owners of the 20 to 40 million pound houses just might take exception to mooring opposite.

[Jambo]

To be fair, there's never anyone in so they probably wouldn't notice...

[Sir Percy]

A tenner a night doesn't sound extortionate.

[Wanderer Vagabond]

Rembrandt Gardens (which we have used a couple of times) has been an interesting trial on a very small scale. It only accommodates a couple of boats, only one of which can be widebeam (as I recall). The booking system changed from the initial experiment. I was more than a little disappointed that the initial approach was dropped seemingly at short notice as the lady running was very customer-focused and not office based. The current system is a bit clunky - we lost out one time because of a rather rigid approach but the second time I sent the email at one minute past midnight on Jan 01! I really wanted it to attend a meeting in London over several days.

 

The scheme is also very specific about the slots - it would be better to book slightly shorter ones up to a limit. But that will require a support system like that run by most hire fleets - more sophisticated than Rembrandt Gardens is currently!

 

The current scheme is also, I suspect deliberately, less than easy to book in order to avoid people over-booking what is a minuscule facility. However, people wanting to arrange their holidays well in advance need to be able to do so without charging through London without an overnight stop.

 

The survey really holds out the hope for something on a much larger scale. I certainly supported it but can see that there will be non-trivial issue to be faced. First off all, there are currently not many free spaces anywhere near what can be described as central London. There are stretches but the neighbours might object - how about putting in rings along the Regents Park stretch! It is likely that any new spaces reservable for visitors would impact on the longer term stayers - quite a few of whom stretch the CC rules to elastic limits. (No, don't assume I am getting at them, just admitting that there are other stakeholders than myself)

 

One place that would be good to be able to book is Paddington Basin but I am not sure about the ability of CaRT to do this as the ownership issues are a tad complex I believe.

 

I do hope that they find a way forward that does not alienate too many people but also makes London a more attractive visitor destination.

Given the booking method for Rembrandt Gardens (you book at the start of the month before you want to stay there) this would suggest that the month you wanted to book for was February, I would have thought that you would have a good chance of getting that anyway. We tried (and failed dismally) to book for June and then July this year also sending off the e-mail at 1 minute past midnight on 1st May and 1st June respectively. Eventually we just turned up and found a mooring in Paddington Basin anyway so, on a micro scale, we didn't find the booking method very successful and said so on out survey return

[Machpoint005]

A tenner a night doesn't sound extortionate.

 

My thoughts exactly.

[Alan de Enfield]

A tenner a night doesn't sound extortionate.

 

Its not London, but that's what our marina charges visitors for :

 

Mooring

All the leccy you can use

Water

Showers

Elsan emptying

Waste bins,

Security

200 yards to the town centre with all the shops / pubs you want.

[Chertsey]

A tenner a night doesn't sound extortionate.

 

Not as a one off, maybe, but it would add up if the practice became more widespread. Also once people start paying, they will start demanding all sorts of extra facilities.

[NilesMI]

The statement looks like it is preparing the way for designating some of the existing CRT visitor mooring spaces as bookable/chargeable ones.

 

But while the survey asked about booking/charging in London, it didn't actually ask for boaters' opinions on that specific proposal.

 

If there is a proposal to create new, additional bookable/chargeable mooring spaces in London, I would support it and while £10/night is on the high side for overnight/short-term moorings elsewhere, for moorings in London it would not seem excessive.

 

On the other hand, I would not be in favour of a proposal to simply convert existing turn up and stop visitor mooring spaces into reserved/chargeable ones.

 

It was interesting that the survey revealed that such a large proportion of boaters had been put off from visiting London because they weren't certain they would find a place to moor. I have to say that having read on this very forum about the mayhem, hot-spots, overstaying armageddon which are the central London waterways I too was concerned before I first took my boat there in mid-July (2015). In the end I had no problem finding convenient places to moor, close to tube and bus, water, pump-out, pubs, restaurants, etc and had a fantastic time visiting friends, going to concerts, museums and all the rest. Also, lots of friendly boaters about. I certainly wouldn't like to do all my boating in or around London, but as a place to visit by boat it's nowhere near as daunting as a lot of the publicity suggests.

[Detling]

You can't have a flat tenner a night in London as it only adds up to 3650 pounds per year, very cheap for a London mooring, you need a sliding scale tenner for 2-4 nights, 20 for next 4 nights 40 for next and so on, this must be rigorously enforced and legally watertight, otherwise some tinpot lawyer is going to get rich at our expense. If you just do a tenner a night visitors will still be looking for a space.

[Lady Muck]

I believe the canal through Regents Park is listed in some way and additional moorings there are considered unlikely. Also the speed that the trip boats go through there would make mooring there a rough experience to say the least. There are a fair number of spots through London that could be dredged / have mooring rings added though.

Its unsuitable, its a very narrow stretch with trip boats going at full chat. They are deep draughted and to force them to the offside, they would ground. There are no services and in some parts road access is tricky. I'm not surprised at the survey results, I haven't been through town since last year, but could not moor both times. 12 hour day very knackering.

[magnetman]

Makes sense to charge for moorings where there is a market. It would need to be well done. Some well needed income for CRT?

 

I put a joke listing on eBay last year (http://m.ebay.com/itm/321792657401) predicting the sale of the central London part of the canal network. I hope it doesn't come to that but I fear it might

[NilesMI]

You can't have a flat tenner a night in London as it only adds up to 3650 pounds per year, very cheap for a London mooring, you need a sliding scale tenner for 2-4 nights, 20 for next 4 nights 40 for next and so on, this must be rigorously enforced and legally watertight, otherwise some tinpot lawyer is going to get rich at our expense. If you just do a tenner a night visitors will still be looking for a space.

 

I don't think the the suggestion is that the bookable moorings would be for anything other than a short stay.

 

But even then, to avoid the problem you describe, you may still need to limit the number of days per year or per month for which any particular boat could book them.

 

The main thing is that if these spaces are to be charged for, they really need to be additional to the currently existing visitor moorings.

[dogless]

I would agree that it would be preferable for any bookable moorings to be in addition to existing visitor moorings, but I don't think it is likely.

 

Taking Llangollen as an example, I don't believe there is a single mooring in the town that isn't charged. No free visitor moorings are left as I recall.

 

Personally, I'd accept the whole of Paddington basin to be operated in the same way as Llangollen with a charge, and strictly controlled. Free would be nice, but to maintain the control I think we have to pay. If a lengthy portion was then pre bookable, and Little Venice area left as it is, wouldn't it address most peoples requirements?

 

Rog

[NilesMI]

You may be partly right, Rog.

 

The comparison between Paddington Basin and Llangollen is a pretty good one, but London is more than just Paddington Basin.

[Jerra]

Who will police the moorings to prevent somebody mooring on a booked space? If there is no policing what penalties could be enforced for somebody who "pinched" a booked space?

[dogless]

It already works in Rembrandt gardens on a small scale.

 

The additional funding should ease any additional costs incurred. But to be honest, I believe the vast majority would 'play the game' and if not, move off when the pre booked boat arrives. The disabled moorings at Braunston are unpoliced, but the system works. 99% of boaters are good people. I was tempted to say all boaters, cos whilst I've been mildly irritated by the odd one, I've yet to meet a bad one.

 

Rog

[biggles47]

It already works in Rembrandt gardens on a small scale.

 

The additional funding should ease any additional costs incurred. But to be honest, I believe the vast majority would 'play the game' and if not, move off when the pre booked boat arrives. The disabled moorings at Braunston are unpoliced, but the system works. 99% of boaters are good people. I was tempted to say all boaters, cos whilst I've been mildly irritated by the odd one, I've yet to meet a bad one.

 

Rog

From my experience, and it appears others, the Rembrandt Garden moorings regularly get booked but not used due to time wasters.