Operation
The Somerset section of the canal was suitable for tub-boats, which were about 20 feet (6.1 m) long and capable of carrying eight tons. The Devon section was suitable for larger broad-beam barges, carrying up to 40 tons. Income from tolls increased steadily from £971 in 1835, rising to £2754 in 1838 and £4926 in 1844. At this point, competition from the railways started. The Bristol and Exeter Railway reached Taunton in 1842 and Exeter in 1844. A branch to Tiverton was opened in 1848, and although the canal company received £1200 for loss of trade while an aqueduct was constructed over the line of the railway, deficits started to mount up almost immediately.
In 1853, with income no longer meeting operational costs, the canal was leased to the Bristol and Exeter Railway. From 1854, the company started to pay a dividend to its shareholders of 0.2%. Just ten years later, an Act of Parliament was obtained to sell the canal to the railway company and to abandon the Somerset section of the canal. The transfer took place on 13 April 1865, and the tub-boat canal was closed in 1867. The lifts were dismantled, and most of the route sold back to the original landowners.
Read more about this topic: Grand Western Canal
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