A couple of thoughts on new mooring arrangements
Nick Atty
Yet again, I arrived at Curdworth to find around 20% of the limited
visitor moorings taken up by a work flat. I'm pretty sure that the 4
private/hire boats there hadn't overstayed their welcome, but as for the
BW one...
And secondly, in a silly mood I pondered on saying "yes, I know you've
got a notice saying please wait up to 30 minutes to share the lock, but
if I don't do another 10 lock-miles today you're going to take my
license off me".
--
On-line canal route planner: http://www.canalplan.org.uk
(Waterways World site of the month, April 2001)
Adrian Stott
<nos...@nandj.freeserve.co.uk> wrote:
>Yet again, I arrived at Curdworth to find around 20% of the limited
>visitor moorings taken up by a work flat.
Ah, you soft midlands folk.
I got to Burnt Mill at Harlow (Stort) last week to find above the lock
a tug with loaded (broad) hopper, and two broad workboats. The former
were taking up all the visitor space except the water point. The
latter were moored breasted, so close to the top of the lock it was
impossible for me to get the barge out without hitting the outer one.
When I came back down the Stort this weekend, the tug and hopper had
been moved off the visitor moorings, but the workboats were still
there. I had to adjust their moorings just to get into the lock.
There used to be a joke in the Lee valley:
Q: How can you tell when you are coming to a lock
A: You see a green boat moored
Well, the colour of the boats may be changing, but it appears their
spots are not (despite several promises).
Adrian
s...@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
"Adrian Stott" <ba...@enable.telinco.com> wrote in message
news:7q33avggj2dh2mejk...@4ax.com...
Sue
Robin Smithett
boats obstructing lock entrances all over the system (even I see it all the
time and I'm not even on a boat).
Supervisors should be told, or maybe even waterway managers.
Robin Smithett
<s...@navvy.freeserve.co.uk> wrote in message
news:b7u6te$akd$1...@newsg4.svr.pol.co.uk...
Adrian Stott
Er, the word "constantly" comes to mind.
Adrian
s...@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
> >> Q: How can you tell when you are coming to a lock
> >>
> >> A: You see a green boat moored
> >>
> >> Well, the colour of the boats may be changing, but it appears their
> >> spots are not (despite several promises).
> >>
> >> Adrian
> >>
> >Has anyone complained to BW?
> >Sue
>
> Er, the word "constantly" comes to mind.
>
> Adrian
>
won't put their own house in order?
Eugene are you still there?
Nick Atty
<ba...@enable.telinco.com> wrote:
>I got to Burnt Mill at Harlow (Stort) last week to find above the lock
>a tug with loaded (broad) hopper, and two broad workboats. The former
>were taking up all the visitor space except the water point. The
>latter were moored breasted, so close to the top of the lock it was
>impossible for me to get the barge out without hitting the outer one.
Ah yes.
I think that was the place where in the time it took us to cook and eat
a large lunch BW arrived, unlocked the boat, took all the bits out and
assembled the tiller, moved it across to the other side of the canal,
locked it all up, and drove off again.
Angela Jefferies
> > On Sat, 19 Apr 2003 14:34:15 +0000, Nick Atty
> > <nos...@nandj.freeserve.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> >
> > >Yet again, I arrived at Curdworth to find around 20% of the limited
> > >visitor moorings taken up by a work flat.
We had real problems today, trying to wind a 70' boat in the winding
hole at Nell Bridge, on the Oxford.
As we approached, there was a 50' or so working boat on the left and a
shorter working boat on the right. I presume they belong to BW. They
looked like the sort of boat which might accept the dredged material
from the canal.
It was extremely difficult, if not impossible, to swing the stern around
enough to get the bow into the hole, and took us some time to achieve
this, and then only by dint of scraping our new paintwork all along the
side of the working boat.
I think I shall go to see BW at The Stop House when we return to
Braunston later this week.
Angela Jefferies
nb. Liberty Belle
s...@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
"Angela Jefferies" <nb.libe...@virgin.net> wrote in message
news:nb.libertybelle-14...@news.fu-berlin.de...
Phone BW at 08004799947 & report
Sue
Bob Adams
s...@navvy.freeserve.co.uk writes
>Phone BW at 08004799947 & report
>Sue
Does this have any effect? If yes, what sort of time delay before
anything (usually) happens?
Bob.
--
email to: ams...@ntlworld.com
Paul Jerome
"Angela Jefferies" <nb.libe...@virgin.net> wrote in message
news:nb.libertybelle-14...@news.fu-berlin.de...
Were they moored with red binder twine. That seems to be standard practice
for BW.
Paul Jerome
Mike Stevens
> Were they moored with red binder twine. That seems to be standard
> practice for BW.
I really have difficulty coming to terms with all this changing of
colours to create a new corporate image. I'm old enough to remember
when BW workboats were always moored with *blue* binder twine.
--
Mike Stevens, narrowboat Felis Catus II
Web site www.mike-stevens.co.uk
No man is an island. So is Man.
Angela Jefferies
>
> Were they moored with red binder twine. That seems to be standard practice
> for BW.
>
> Paul Jerome
>
>
Angela
Jeff
Apart from the scratches, how are you enjoying your new boat?
Nick Atty
I've actually decided what to say on their "consultation".
There have been three recent occasions when I've been unable to get onto
visitor mooring. In one case it was because of a BW work boat
(Curdworth), in the second it was because there are hardly any visitor
moorings 'cos most of the space is official BW long-stay moorings
(Newbold) and the third case was because BW had bowed to pressure from
newly built houses and removed large stretches of visitor moorings
(Nantwich).
This is not my usual over enthusiastic hyperbole, but the genuine 3 most
recent events. It's pretty clear who's to blame for this - and it's not
towpath sufflers.
Eugene Baston
time to time.
There are circumstances when BW boats are moored where they are, for
example, to gain vehicular access to and from the boat each day with
plant and other machinery. Similarly the draught of some BW boats
requires that they moor alongside piled and deep moorings, although I
accept that this applies to some other vessels too, such as historic
boats.
Our operations director has agreed to issue a guidance note to all
bankside staff asking them to, wherever and whenever possible, moor
with consideration to other boaters. I hope that this will make a
noticeable effect when we're all out boating in the future.
Eugene
Adrian Stott
(Eugene Baston) wrote:
Hi Eugene,
Congratulations on your new job.
I see you've picked up the reply style very quickly <g>.
I hope it is not unkind to suggest that the reason BW doesn't moor its
(deep) boats elsewhere is dredging arrears.
Adrian
Nick Atty
wrote:
>Paul Jerome <paul....@nospam.jeromes.org> wrote:
>
>> Were they moored with red binder twine. That seems to be standard
>> practice for BW.
>
>I really have difficulty coming to terms with all this changing of
>colours to create a new corporate image. I'm old enough to remember
>when BW workboats were always moored with *blue* binder twine.
No Mike, we're old enough to remember when they had little frayed bits
of blue string hanging from both ends, but drifted cheerfully along the
canal all by themselves.
Nick, manfully resisted the 'fraid knot joke.
Bob Adams
Baston <eugene...@britishwaterways.co.uk> writes
>
>Our operations director has agreed to issue a guidance note to all
>bankside staff asking them to, wherever and whenever possible, moor
>with consideration to other boaters.
One would have assumed that this instruction would already be a part of
their normal working instructions, not something that only now appears
to be a 'good idea'.
Or are you saying that BW agree that their staff are breaking the rules
and that BW are about to consult with them about what they intend to do
to the rule 'shufflers'?
>I hope that this will make a
>noticeable effect when we're all out boating in the future.
>
>Eugene
--
email to: ams...@ntlworld.com
Don Aitken
wrote:
>In message <49e0a55a.03042...@posting.google.com>, Eugene
>Baston <eugene...@britishwaterways.co.uk> writes
>>
>>Our operations director has agreed to issue a guidance note to all
>>bankside staff asking them to, wherever and whenever possible, moor
>>with consideration to other boaters.
>
>One would have assumed that this instruction would already be a part of
>their normal working instructions, not something that only now appears
>to be a 'good idea'.
>
>Or are you saying that BW agree that their staff are breaking the rules
>and that BW are about to consult with them about what they intend to do
>to the rule 'shufflers'?
>
Which would you rather have: a confession of guilt, or better practice
in future? Of course, I know that for some people BW can't do anything
right ...
--
Don Aitken
brian
news:49e0a55a.03042...@posting.google.com...
> Thanks for raising this issue, one that I've also encountered from
> time to time.
>
> Our operations director has agreed to issue a guidance note to all
> bankside staff asking them to, wherever and whenever possible, moor
> with consideration to other boaters. I hope that this will make a
> noticeable effect when we're all out boating in the future.
>
> Eugene
Maybe that's why they moved the one from the lock moorings at the bottom of
the Napton flight this week. It had only been there since about Christmas
--
___
Brian from sunny Suffolk by the river Hundred
David Long
Baston <eugene...@britishwaterways.co.uk> writes
moorings with vehicular access, BW should designate workboat moorings as
such - and create new ones (by dredging, for example... which might have
collateral benefits) in places which are not popular mooring areas..
--
David Long
Sankey Canal Restoration Society http://www.scars.org.uk/
St. Mary's http://www.geocities.com/andrew_fishburn/stmary1.html
Wigan Webcam http://www.hutin.u-net.com/webcam/
John Bennett
-------------snip----------------------------
>>
>Perhaps, since it has the resources, and an obvious requirement for
>moorings with vehicular access, BW should designate workboat moorings as
>such -
You mean like they've done at Cropredy (S Oxford canal) for example?
Once there were plentiful visitor moorings below the lock, recently
converted to long-term moorings plus a BW workboat space by the bridge -
no thanks!
>and create new ones (by dredging, for example... which might have
>collateral benefits) in places which are not popular mooring areas..
Now that really is a good idea;-)
Cheers John
--
John Bennett nb "Jake B"
Somerset UK S. Oxford Canal
MSCCo Tug "Bennett" web page
http://www.pearce-bennett.freeserve.co.uk/bennett.htm
David Long
Bennett <johna....@virgin.net> writes
>On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 David Long <Da...@scars.org.uk> wrote:
>-------------snip----------------------------
>>>
>>Perhaps, since it has the resources, and an obvious requirement for
>>moorings with vehicular access, BW should designate workboat moorings as
>>such -
>
>You mean like they've done at Cropredy (S Oxford canal) for example?
>Once there were plentiful visitor moorings below the lock, recently
>converted to long-term moorings plus a BW workboat space by the bridge -
>no thanks!
Well, I think that if operational requirements are such that BW need to
reserve moorings at specific spots, they should do so openly, rather
than cause the upset they apparently do by seeming to moor wherever the
mood takes them. Such sites should say something like "If no work boat
is present by the 2.45pm knocking-off time, it should be assumed this
place is freely available for use by overnight visitors".
Redesignating visitors moorings as long-term moorings is another
issue...;-)
>
>>and create new ones (by dredging, for example... which might have
>>collateral benefits) in places which are not popular mooring areas..
>
>Now that really is a good idea;-)
>
Hopefully market forces will drive BW to place such essential moorings
away from honey spots - otherwise they destroy their own argument about
waterways promoting economic benefit.
David Long
<mar...@wanadoo.nl> writes
>On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 21:58:43 +0100, David Long <Da...@scars.org.uk>
>wrote:
>
>
>>Hopefully market forces
>
>in a monopoly situation there are no market forces.
>
>>will drive BW to place such essential moorings
>>away from honey spots - otherwise they destroy their own argument about
>>waterways promoting economic benefit.
>
credibility if its own activities reduce the value of a site to the
local community. Hogging moorings unnecessarily does just that.
Arthur Marshall
from martin <mar...@wanadoo.nl> contains these words:
> On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 21:58:43 +0100, David Long <Da...@scars.org.uk>
> wrote:
> >Hopefully market forces
> in a monopoly situation there are no market forces.
> >will drive BW to place such essential moorings
> >away from honey spots - otherwise they destroy their own argument about
> >waterways promoting economic benefit.
There are new moorings at the top of the Shropshire Union at the bridge
that leads off to Chester Zoo. The old stone coping had collapsed and
has mostly been replaced and new mooring rings put in.
As is traditional (and tradition is very important, as we all know), no
dredging has been done so you can't actually moor at the new moorings,
and the last remaining one on the stone coping, where you can moor, now
sports a sign saying that it is reserved for BW craft. Not that I've
ever seen one there, you understand.
I suspect someone with a screwdriver will be along any time now...
--
Arthur Marshall - Caller for Traditional Dances
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/barndancer/
nb Lord Byron's Maggot
Adrian Stott
>On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 21:58:43 +0100, David Long <Da...@scars.org.uk>
>wrote:
>
>
>>Hopefully market forces
>
>in a monopoly situation there are no market forces.
True. But the proposal that BW has a monopoly on moorings seems not
to be sustainable.
And even if BW did have such a monopoly, there would still be a
market-clearing price for moorings in each area. This is the price at
which not all berths are taken up (i.e. there are some vacancies). To
look at it another way, a waiting list indicates that the moorings
involved are priced below the market rate.
Adrian
Steve Wood
But surely this argument falls down when the only alternative to joining the
waiting list (for the vast majority who need a permanent mooring) is mooring
unlawfully...
Steve W
Adrian Stott
>>> in a monopoly situation there are no market forces.
>>
>> True. But the proposal that BW has a monopoly on moorings seems not
>> to be sustainable.
>>
>> And even if BW did have such a monopoly, there would still be a
>> market-clearing price for moorings in each area. This is the price at
>> which not all berths are taken up (i.e. there are some vacancies). To
>> look at it another way, a waiting list indicates that the moorings
>> involved are priced below the market rate.
>
>But surely this argument falls down when the only alternative to joining the
>waiting list (for the vast majority who need a permanent mooring) is mooring
>unlawfully...
If moorings are priced at the market-clearing level, there will always
be a few vacancies and no waiting lists. The decision then is whether
you want to pay that price.
If it is too expensive for you around where you are now, mooring
illegally is not the only alternative. You've overlooked the option
of mooring in a less expensive part of the network.
Adrian
Bob Adams
<art...@zetnet.co.uk> writes
>As is traditional (and tradition is very important, as we all know), no
>dredging has been done so you can't actually moor at the new
>moorings, and the last remaining one on the stone coping, where you
>can moor, now sports a sign saying that it is reserved for BW craft. Not
>that I've ever seen one there, you understand.
I have a deeply held belief that as a BW license holder, I am therefore
a 'BW craft'. I am convinced that Eugene will shortly confirm this view
as being totally correct.
I also believe in the existence of flying pigs, UFO's and Jurassic Park.
--
email to: ams...@ntlworld.com