The Canal and River Trusts – Wyrley and Essington Canal .
I have held talks with the CRT Officials in the last few week trying to ensure that we continue to get the best out of our canal amenity.
I spoke with them about having the Bentley Arm dredged, to allow full use of the moorings for trading boats as we ready ourselves for the Wednesfield Canal Festival in August.
I spoke with them about the need for extra moorings on the W&E upto Sainsbury’s so that we can get more trading boats in on Festival days. Plus, I spoke with them about the management plan they are working too, which delivers the Local Nature Reserve that CRT , Wolverhampton and Walsall have signed up to deliver. Its a 21 year plan and it is important to Wednesfield and the City of Wolverhampton.
Walsall end of the Wyrley and Essington Canal is having some work undertaken, and the scientists tell me they are using some interesting bio actions to try and control invasive water weeds.
CRT have embraced the well being nature of the canals that they have in their ownership. Working in partnership with Local Authorities across our conurbation. Here in Wolverhampton the City Council working with CRT have seen financial investment into the network which has led to lights being installed, driven by Solar Energy along the canal towpath until it reaches Sainsburys.
This is to improve walking and cycling routes along the city’s towpaths.
In all the lights have been installed along six miles of the canal with one every ten metres. The lights stretch along the Main Line Canal from Coseley to the bottom of the Wolverhampton Lock Flights and then along the Wyrley & Essington from the Wolverhampton Train station to the Bentley Bridge Retail Park, in Wednesfield.
The project is being funded partly, by Priority 4 of the European Regional Development Fund(Last of the EU funding I am afraid! ).
The Wednesfield Town part of the overall plan for The Wolverhampton Investment Plan Town’s Fund – titled the ‘Wednesfield Interventions- speaks of a project, “comprising of improvements to around 2 kms of currently unpaved towpath along the Wyrley& Essington Canal from Bentley Bridge into Wednesfield Town Centre to enhance pedestrian and cycle connectivity and provide improved connections to residential areas along the canal are also included.”
