Bridgewater Canal (Runcorn Locks Branch)
The exact dimensions of the largest boat that can travel on the waterway are not known. The maximum headroom is not known. The maximum draught is not known.
It has a junction with the Runcorn and Weston Canal at Original Junction with the Runcorn and Weston Canal.
Proposals to restore Runcorn Locks at the western extremity of the Bridgewater Canal have been under consideration for a number of years and are, in principle, supported by Halton Borough Council and the IWA. A Runcorn Locks Restoration Society was formed in 2004 but restoration has been unable to proceed as the link roads of the ‘Silver Jubilee’ bridge across the Mersey have blocked the route at the current head of navigation of the Runcorn arm. Work has now commenced on the construction of a replacement ‘Mersey Gateway' bridge and the link roads will no longer be required once it is open clearing the route for a restoration. There have been studies commissioned into the redevelopment of Runcorn docks which might allow an even a more ambitious objective. The Runcorn & Weston Canal used run alongside the docks and if this connection could be re-established it would create a new cruising ring joining the River Weaver to the the Bridgewater Canal without having to venture onto the Manchester Ship Canal. The line of the former Runcorn & Weston Canal does have some obstructions but a redevelopment plan could easily incorporate an alternative route. http://www.unlockruncorn.org/
This waterway is excluded by default from route planning with the following explanation: "closed"
The navigational authority for this waterway is The Bridgewater Canal Company LimitedRelevant publications — Waterway Maps:
- Waterway Routes 01M - England and Wales Map
- Waterway Routes 83M - Cheshire Ring Map (Downloadable)
- Waterway Routes 25M - Bridgewater Canal Map (Downloadable)
Relevant publications — Waterway Guides:
| Waterloo Bridge (Runcorn) The limit of navigation. |
|||
| Queensway Bridge (Runcorn) | a few yards | 0 locks | |
| A557 to A553 Slip Road Ground level one way road crossing. |
¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Runcorn Locks Branch Lock No 5 | ½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Railway Bridge (Runcorn to Liverpool) | ½ furlongs | 2 locks | |
| Runcorn Locks Branch Lock No 4 | 1 furlong | 2 locks | |
| Runcorn Locks Branch Lock No 3 | 2 furlongs | 4 locks | |
| Runcorn Locks Branch Lock No 2 | 2½ furlongs | 6 locks | |
| Original Junction with the Runcorn and Weston Canal | 2½ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Bridgewater House | 2¾ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Runcorn Locks Branch Lock No 1 | 2¾ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Bridgewater Canal Junction (closed) | 3¼ furlongs | 10 locks |
Why not log in and add some (select "External websites" from the menu (sometimes this is under "Edit"))?
Wikipedia has a page about Bridgewater Canal
The Bridgewater Canal connects Runcorn, Manchester and Leigh, in North West England. It was commissioned by Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester. It was opened in 1761 from Worsley to Manchester, and later extended from Manchester to Runcorn, and then from Worsley to Leigh.
The canal is connected to the Manchester Ship Canal via a lock at Cornbrook; to the Rochdale Canal in Manchester; to the Trent and Mersey Canal at Preston Brook, southeast of Runcorn; and to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Leigh. It once connected with the River Mersey at Runcorn but has since been cut off by a slip road to the Silver Jubilee Bridge.
The Bridgewater canal is described as the first great achievement of the canal age, although the Sankey Canal opened earlier. Bridgewater captured the public imagination because of its engineering feats; it required the construction of an aqueduct to cross the River Irwell, and a tunnel at Worsley. Its success helped inspire a period of intense canal building in Britain, known as Canal Mania. It later faced intense competition from the Liverpool and Manchester Railway and the Macclesfield Canal. Navigable throughout its history, it is one of the few canals in Britain not to have been nationalised, and remains privately owned. Pleasure craft now use the canal which forms part of the Cheshire Ring network of canals.