Restoration
Long term plans are being developed to reopen the section north of Tewitfield, which is still in water for 9 miles (14 km), fed by Killington Reservoir between Kendal and Sedbergh adjacent to the M6 motorway : the final 5 miles (8.0 km) into Kendal are dry.
The Northern Reaches Restoration Group (NRRG) and the Lancaster Canal Restoration Partnership aim to restore the canal from Tewitfield to Kendal. There are nine partners: British Waterways, Cumbria County Council, Inland Waterways Association, Kendal Town Council, Lancashire County Council, City of Lancaster Council, Lancaster Canal Trust, South Lakeland District Council, and The Waterways Trust.
The restoration will involve restoring the six places where the canal is culverted (including the three places where the M6 Motorway construction blocked the route), restoring Hincaster Tunnel, restoring the 5 dry miles, and a new crossing of the A590 road near Kendal, as well as many more minor works including work on 52 listed structures. The extensive engineering required will be expensive (a 2002 estimate being £60 million), and so restoration is planned to proceed in phases.
The first phase is planned to be restoration of 3.7 miles (6.0 km) southwards from Canal Head in Kendal to Natland Road. Funding of £750,000 was provided in 2005 for the planning and design of this first phase: construction works are not expected to commence before late 2007 with completion in 2009 at the earliest. Despite the projected 2009 completion date, the work to restore the canal had still not been started by late 2010.
The Grade 1 Listed Lune Aqueduct was scheduled for a two million pound facelift in 2009/10. The organisations responsible for the aqueduct have been awarded £50,000 by the Heritage Lottery fund to enable them put together a credible bid for funding, but the work is not now expected to be completed until 2015.
Read more about this topic: Lancaster Canal
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