Here's where our money goes

Published: Thursday, 29 April 2010

MANY thousands of pounds are being spent on a wheelchair ramp at Weston Lock on the Trent & Mersey Canal that has no purpose whatsoever, yet taking away valuable mooring space

For the broad Weston Lock has no facilities for any wheelchair bound person,  with no surfaced towpath that would take a wheelchair. As it is a long uphill way to the village, no person so bound would want to travel either way. It is completely pointless.

For anglers?

Surely all that money is not being spent for wheelchair bound anglers, as after all their rules state no fishing at lock approaches, and that particular lock approach is bad with the turbulence from the overflow and the force of water through the narrow approach, so the last thing needed are anglers with their keep nets.

Boaters Christine and Ken Booth were astounded at the money being spent so asked one of the builders what was the point, and was told they were putting a wheelchair ramp in so that they could come down to the waters edge.

Who would go down there?

But argues Christine:

"I ask you would you go down there in a wheelchair?  Not only that, but where are all the boats going to moor to get to use the lock, especially in the summer months when it is manic?"

"I asked the chaps how much it had cost and was told 'I bet a arm and a leg', but money would be best spent on putting the locks right so that they don't leak, and that you should be able to close gates and they stay closed."

Taken up mooring space

But by far the worst is that the whole thing has taken up valuable  lock mooring space, leaving space for only one boat—as Christine's photograph shows—at an exceptionally busy lock indeed, with not even the sense to leave a couple of feet for boaters to get off their boats.

Little wonder so many boaters now question the ability of BW to run its waterways, with money being taken away from much needed maintenance to be spent on such useless things, whilst the locks themselves are being left to rot away through  lack of money.