SO NOW we have it—the extra boat licence costs we are going to be lumbered with.
Always providing of course you are not accepting the increases, but quitting from what is becoming a crazy experience.
For it is these 'above inflation' boat licence charges that we are going to get, that worry me, for what will they amount to—and that is the question. Whatever, it will mean we will all be paying much more for much less—I'm meaning of course the now seemingly standard daily stoppages, that last for days, often for weeks and even for months.
Just think of those on such as the Leeds & Liverpool, Huddersfield Narrow or Peak Forest—with stoppage after stoppage making cruising an impossibility. And the poor sods will most certainly have to pay more for the privilege!
But back to the 'above inflation' licence increases, that gives CaRT an open hand to slap on whatever it wants every year, and I guess will keep slapping it on to cover its overspend that has gone haywire since it came into being.
Overspend obviously, but not alas on the maintenance of its waterways for the benefit of us boaters—though it is us boaters who are obviously increasingly having to pay.
Battered
But I feel for the continuous cruisers who are getting really battered with their boat licences increasing to an extra 25% over five years—and this plus the 'above inflation increase' that will be added each year, so not even able to calculate their future costs until that is known.
I know quite a few continuous cruisers, who actually abide by the rules, the single boaters preferably moving where not so many locks—and no way use the system as much as marina based boaters who often take around six months on the waterways, really using—and often depleting—its facilities.
We too, in our heyday, covered many miles and locks during a year, far exceeding that of an average continuous cruiser, especially, I may add, those on short 'there and back' lockless routines!
But have you thought who tells CaRT of its many stoppages? After all there are no lengthmen around any more whose job it was. And not many marina based cruisers around in winter. It is these self same continuous cruisers, who notice and tell CaRT of problems all the year round, but methinks it is going to loose their empathy, after their licence battering. A real case of biting the hand that feeds...
Going backwards—as usual!
The padlock is missing from the gate of the Castle Garden moorings in Leicester on the Leicester Section (pictured) and a stoppage notice tells that boaters cannot currently access the moorings outside the hours of 8am to 5pm, as the gate will be deadlocked (whatever that means) for security reasons.
So rather cleverly we are informed that this came into force yesterday, Friday 6th and there will be an update on Tuesday the 3rd... No, not my mistake. But yes, an update before!
CaRT going backwards as usual?
But what I cannot understand is that boaters—and we are one of them—simply pull over onto the moorings and tie-up. (As can be seen in the picture.) With no key needed. And the standard waterways key opens the lock on the gate into the park.
And I thought the stoppage notices were improving—hardly!
Still flogging it
Our Keith tells me that Damian is still flogging the 888,000,000 visitors a year to the waterways in his weekly Brag Rag.
That works out at an average of 1,216 per mile every day Keith calculates, thinking it was getting crowded as must have been 20 people passed me today not to mention the 15 dogs with them!
It means that on average every person in the country—that's all 71 million of us—visit the canals at least 12 times a year!
Keith ends by remarking—CaRT thinks of a figure then doubles it but this goes way beyond that!
Must have missed them
Our two and a half weeks on the Trent & Mersey, Coventry and Oxford down to Rugby and back only saw just a couple of hundred visitors altogether, with the Oxford particularly sparse.
Looking back at our last time on that canal I actually wrote that we only saw two ladies on its towpath in al ofl one particular day.
Pictured is part of the Oxford Canal towpath, that will be lucky to get one visitor a day!.
I reckon that whoever is responsible for telling of the many millions of visitors must suffer from Dyscalculia!
Victor Swift—telling tales for 23 years...