Jump to content

Railings for Manchester Canals


Mike C

Featured Posts

The pressure to have railings fitted along the Rochdale in Manchester has a lot of momentum. Somone has started a counter petition which needs a lot of support to be taken seriously. 

For those that think railings would be damaging and present their own risks and dangers here is the link. To a petition that aims to slow the momentum down a bit. 

 

https://chn.ge/2M4uUUn

 

Many thanks

Edited by Mike C
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I fear this petition will do more harm than good.  Almost 96,000 people have signed the petition in favour of fitting railings. If only a couple of hundred sign the opposing petition, it will only serve to demonstrate how insignificant the opposition is!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree it's very unfortunate that it was started, but now it has been then the argument may be used that the contributors are direct users of the waterway whereas the pro-railings contributors are expressing a detached, less well informed view. 

We can but try. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

96,000 people have signed- well fitting railing may affect mooring and as has been said access to the waterway. I wonder if the railing option has been caused by cyclists forcing pedestrians to the waters edge. Now railings for a cycle lane that could be an option.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Heartland said:

96,000 people have signed- well fitting railing may affect mooring and as has been said access to the waterway. I wonder if the railing option has been caused by cyclists forcing pedestrians to the waters edge. Now railings for a cycle lane that could be an option.

 

Indeed, it should provide miles of points to easily attach mooring lines to. ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...
4 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

It looks as if Devises has learnt something from the drunks drowning in Manchester and realise that alcohol and deep water don't mix https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/17272010.objection-to-floating-off-licence-in-devizes/?ref=fbshr

So how does this work?  unless she has a winter mooring she can only stay there for two weeks, so does she have to get a new licence everytime she moors at each specific location?

I met another beer boat at Anderton, he had chairs and tables set up on the grass next to the towpath and was doing very good business. I think he said his licence was valid anywhere in that region.

 

Not sure Devizes is a good spot since the towpath has been upgraded to a cycle super-highway!!!, I have also heard of problems with street drinkers in that area of late.

 

...............Dave

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Having cruised through and stayed in Manchester earlier this year, I'd say they need to do something about their huge numbers of outrageously drunk/drugged citizens for far more important reasons than them being incapable of stopping themselves falling in a canal that's been there for 200 years.

  • Greenie 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Sea Dog said:

Having cruised through and stayed in Manchester earlier this year, I'd say they need to do something about their huge numbers of outrageously drunk/drugged citizens for far more important reasons than them being incapable of stopping themselves falling in a canal that's been there for 200 years.

Coincidentally, the "Don't Drink and Drown" campaign had just been featured on Granada Reports in Manchester.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, rgreg said:

Coincidentally, the "Don't Drink and Drown" campaign had just been featured on Granada Reports in Manchester.

It was on our news last night. The young man who drowned was from the North East.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, rgreg said:

Coincidentally, the "Don't Drink and Drown" campaign had just been featured on Granada Reports in Manchester.

Sounds like a good idea to me. I would also question what the establishments who are fuelling the issue are doing to mitigate it.  My experience would suggest they're taking maximum profit and very little responsibility. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There was a time when canals were for boaters and especially those engaged in commercial carrying. The Rochdale. Bridgewater and Ashton all had massive and busy warehouses built for the trade on the waterways. The reinvention of these historic structures, or their former sites, as homes, public houses, theatres and other forms of social venues ignores the past as well as forgetting the needs of the boaters today. There have been cases of drunken boatmen loosing their lives in the times of the carrying trade, but the problem now appears to be one of education and maybe dont drink and drown is a way forward. Better still advising people that after downing 29 pints of lager following a Manchester City victory tends to dull the senses if a walk along the cut is planned.

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

I came up the Rochdale through this lock which has now been improved and made "safe" you can now only access the lockside via a narrow gap on the edge of the canal on the towpath side. The offside can only be accessed by crossing the gates and not by the tail bridge, which was the thing that was said to be dangerous.

IMG_20190321_092355.jpg.a5d226d4aab0c662e65e722934089638.jpg

 

Narrow access to lockside. The fencing now goes all round to the other side of the lock

 

 

 

IMG_20190321_092401.jpg.4d83c10679f2ede2cd4b976ceb772f26.jpg

 

The extent of the fencing on the offside means that you can't get round there, in the case of an emergency the only option is to go over the top gates which is great if you need to close the bottom paddles!

IMG_20190321_092355.jpg

IMG_20190321_092401.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, captain birdseye said:

The offside can only be accessed by crossing the gates and not by the tail bridge, which was the thing that was said to be dangerous.

No, the problem with that lock was the drunken eejits trying and failing to cross the head gates (which are in a direct line from one path to another) instead of walking to the curvy bridge 80 feet away.

 

1 hour ago, captain birdseye said:

in the case of an emergency the only option is to go over the top gates which is great if you need to close the bottom paddles!

 It's a shallow lock (boat deep).  Jump across the roof of the boat if you don't think you have time to go round the head gates.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Came down the Rochdale 9 earlier this week. Locks were fine but it seemed to take an age with having to dodge scaffolding and temporary fencing. 

 

There are already railings along a good portion of the towpath, especially where it’s quite narrow. 

I can’t see the problem with having more. 

 

I can’t understand why it’s still a bit if a shit hole throughout? 

There’s a sculpture of a horse made from what looks like wicker but isn’t, as an attempt to brighten things up. And theres some lettering about the Hacienda further up. And there’s daffodils in crackhead corner. But generally it’s not good and stinks of piss. 

With all the bars and businesses along that stretch I’d have thought there’d be more of an input or pressure from them (the bars and businesses) to improve it. 

 

Tibs (?) Lock is the big problem with the drunks jumping in. Apparently they enjoy jumping off the curved bridge. Let them. Only got themselves to blame if it goes wrong. 

But a railing for the stumbling drunk on a narrow towpath is ok. Just get the local bars and clubs selling the booze to pay for it. 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Goliath said:

Came down the Rochdale 9 earlier this week. Locks were fine but it seemed to take an age with having to dodge scaffolding and temporary fencing. 

 

There are already railings along a good portion of the towpath, especially where it’s quite narrow. 

I can’t see the problem with having more. 

 

I can’t understand why it’s still a bit if a shit hole throughout? 

There’s a sculpture of a horse made from what looks like wicker but isn’t, as an attempt to brighten things up. And theres some lettering about the Hacienda further up. And there’s daffodils in crackhead corner. But generally it’s not good and stinks of piss. 

With all the bars and businesses along that stretch I’d have thought there’d be more of an input or pressure from them (the bars and businesses) to improve it. 

 

Tibs (?) Lock is the big problem with the drunks jumping in. Apparently they enjoy jumping off the curved bridge. Let them. Only got themselves to blame if it goes wrong. 

But a railing for the stumbling drunk on a narrow towpath is ok. Just get the local bars and clubs selling the booze to pay for it. 

 

 

I have just read Capt Ahabs Blog 

where he says CRT are going for the Green Flag Award down there.

https://captainahabswaterytales.blogspot.com/2019/03/crt-jottings-national-council-march-2019.html?spref=fb 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Goliath said:

Came down the Rochdale 9 earlier this week. Locks were fine but it seemed to take an age with having to dodge scaffolding and temporary fencing. 

 

There are already railings along a good portion of the towpath, especially where it’s quite narrow. 

I can’t see the problem with having more. 

 

I can’t understand why it’s still a bit if a shit hole throughout? 

There’s a sculpture of a horse made from what looks like wicker but isn’t, as an attempt to brighten things up. And theres some lettering about the Hacienda further up. And there’s daffodils in crackhead corner. But generally it’s not good and stinks of piss. 

With all the bars and businesses along that stretch I’d have thought there’d be more of an input or pressure from them (the bars and businesses) to improve it. 

 

Tibs (?) Lock is the big problem with the drunks jumping in. Apparently they enjoy jumping off the curved bridge. Let them. Only got themselves to blame if it goes wrong. 

But a railing for the stumbling drunk on a narrow towpath is ok. Just get the local bars and clubs selling the booze to pay for it. 

 

 

Manchesters Canals are all a pile a S**t*, probably the worse of any city, and Manchester should be ashamed of itself. There are a few volunteers doing a good job trying to clean things up, a few places where good things are happening, New Islington is mostly good, but in many ways things are still going downhill. A few years ago Castlefield was a good place to stop, with some nice bits of history, some venues and nightlife, and a feeling that it come become a little Gas Street replica. Now most visitor moorings have gone in favour of drab long term moorings, visitors are confined to the car park side where kids deal drugs and smash bottles (if you can get there at all because its got very silted). Except for the Wharf the pubs/bars have gone, some of it is boarded up and I assume due to turn into yet more housing.

Manchester is not a destination, its a place to get through on the way to somewhere better.

 

..............Dave

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, Goliath said:

I agree. 

And such a shame

The city has lots to offer. 

But not for boats. 

 

 

 

 

And not much of it legal...

 

What they need is an elected mayor to sort the place out - then we'd see a difference! ;)

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, The Welsh Cruiser said:

The mayor is too busy 'saying the right things' to actually do anything.

 

No nothing at all. Like not donating 15% of his mayoral salary to homelessness charities? Oh, wait a minute ...

 

Besides which, much of his work has been hampered and delayed by a central government paralysed by all the Brexit arsing about.

 

I take, it, however, that you were not one of the 63% who voted for him, and do not live in any of the ten Greater Manchester boroughs, all of which returned a majority vote for him?

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.