Protest march to save route of Wilts & Berks Canal

MANY RESIDENTS are expected to march through Swindon on this coming Sunday

This is to protest against the proposed plans for a refurbished Oasis Centre, Janet Friend reports.

There is a petition, that its organisers tell has reached 3,000 signatures against the plans for the Oasis Centre to be moved slightly to allow restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal.

More visible

So now a more visible show is organised for Sunday 16th February to show concerns that the redevelopment of the Oasis will destroy the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust’s hope to restore the canal through Swindon town centre.

Seven Capital’s plans to restore the Oasis Centre, which has been closed since 2020, take 10 metres on the route of the waterway meaning the remaining space would be too narrow to bring back a canal and its towpath.

The route of the waterway has a barrier defining its area through Swindon and it is thought by the protesters that a waterway though the town will bring some much needed attraction to the town, that is described as a 'concrete jungle'.