That's just tough!

Published: Thursday, 03 June 2021

BOATERS in London being moved off moorings they just sit on without paying a mooring fee for is just tough as far as I'm concerned, writes John Coxon.

They have no right to moan about it as they have no right to be there! Getting a Continuous Cruiser (CC) licence and then not moving is just deliberate fraud as far as I'm concerned, and it gives all us CC's a bad name?

They should pay

If they want to moor long-term then they should pay for it like all long-term moorers!

I've always said if CaRT charged them a few grand a year to moor in London etc. it would clear it overnight! Bleating on about not being able to just sit there month after month for free gets no sympathy from me. If they played by the rules they'd have nothing to bleat about!

There's no control and no common sense about where they moor! They're stopping all other boats visiting that area because there's nowhere left free to moor as a visitor for a few days! CaRT just designating a few mooring spots that need prior booking is no substitute at all. It's not possible to plan a journey that finely at times, especially with all the unplanned stoppages we are now getting!

Have to move every 14 days

A CC licence means you move every 14 days maximum and CaRT should state that between 1st January and 31st December you must cruise at least 100 canal miles and spend at least four full months in locations at least 50 miles apart by canal. If not then the yearly mooring fee will be imposed automatically. That would stop them swapping over with a boat half a mile away every two weeks!

It's not difficult, I do it every year without really trying! If you don't want to continuously cruise then get a long term mooring!

Although I don't agree with CaRT's targeting of CC's over moorings in general I do feel they have a point in places like London etc where people buy a boat to just moor there to get cheap accommodation, they are just taking the wee wee in my opinion! It also means that visitors are unable to visit as there is nowhere to moor. They don't even keep the water points and lock landings etc. clear in places!

Leaving no space for visitors

Mooring three abreast on one side and one on the offside and leaving no space for visitors to moor or even enough space to let two boats pass each other is just ill-mannered and ignorant as far as I'm concerned.

Start charging them a mooring fee, council tax, a low emission zone daily charge etc., £6000 + £1049.44 + £4562.50 = £11,611.94 per year on top of their boat licence, insurance etc. Ban high carbon emitting solid fuel heating as they have in the low emission zone (EZ) in London for houses, and they'll scatter like rabbits who've just seen a buzzard to get out of there, as it'll not be a warm cheap doss any more? CaRT could make a tidy sum too, 500 boats at £6000 = £3,000,000. That'll fix a few locks?

All the sob stories about needing to be near work, school, hospitals etc. are just sympathy grabbing crocodile tears? I don't believe any of them!

Earning London wages

If they're earning London wages then they can afford London prices, especially if two wages are coming in? If they move out of London they could reduce this charge to about £3500 including a season rail ticket, so all their excuses are meaningless!

There are plenty of marina spaces available up and down the country, I pass half empty ones all the time, so they have no excuse if they need to be in one place all the time.

No, they just don't want to pay their way and expect everyone to sympathise with them! Well, I've got news for them—we don't!