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Closure - Macclesfield Canal - info from narrowboatworld

DISCOVERING that the bed of the Macclesfield Canal will also require repairs as well as the actual breach, has resulted in an announcement from Canal & River Trust that the repairs will take longer than first expected.
It was on the 20th May that the waterway failed at Bollington, with subsequent investigations finding that other parts of the canal bed will need repairing, but access was a major problem, Keith Gudgin tells us.

Used canal bed

The only way to get machinery and materials to the site was to use the canal bed as a road, but that itself caused problems as it contained a great deal of soft silt, but this was overcome by using bog mats, though the weight they could carry was restricted.

Contractors worked through the holiday weekend laying the mats to construct a road in the bottom of the canal, so now the machinery can be moved to the site, but the restrictions mean that only a dumper truck can be used to transport material.

Prolong the stoppage

But as further excavations are made, further problems have arisen as it has been discovered that other areas of the canal bed will need repair, that will, the Trust states, prolong the stoppage for weeks.

With the restrictions on access and working in such a confined space it means progress is slow, and not knowing if any further problems will arise, the Trust is unable to give a date when the waterway will be re-opened.