Netherton maintenance
A FOUR months project has begun to carry out essential maintenance to Netherton Tunnel, that is the link between the northern and southern Birmingham Canal Navigations.
Opened in August 1858, Netherton Tunnel is 3,027 yards long, being constructed as a broad tunnel to alleviate the bottleneck of the adjacent narrow Dudley Tunnel which had boats having to wait even days to get passage.
Nine lives
Though the last of the canal tunnels to be built, it still claimed nine lives with 18 others seriously injured.
However, due to the nature of its design, plus the result of local ground conditions, cracks have appeared in the brickwork with many breaking off, that caused serious concern, hence the repair works that will safeguard the tunnel's future.
The project will cost £1.5million and involves carrying out repairs to a 55 yards centre section of the tunnel, by engineers from May Gurney. The work will comprise of drilling holes within the tunnel brickwork, driving in steel tubes which are then filled with concrete.
Reinforced
This section of the tunnel will also be reinforced with a new arch to create a stable centre section, with George Ballinger, Head of Engineering at Canal & River Trust, explaining:
The work started at the end of last year and is due to be completed in early March. During the works the tunnel and towpath will be closed to members of the public."We have been keeping a close eye on Netherton Tunnel for some time, and have carried out various repairs over the years, the last being in the early 1980s. The centre section of tunnel that will be repaired over the weeks ahead has really got us concerned and, ultimately, if we did nothing the tunnel could collapse."