Details of decline

[Thamesbank]

Too many have been priced off the Thames and the trend shows no signs of letting up. The Thames Alliance Waterways Plan details this for the non-tidal on page 56:

"The River Thames is one of the oldest and most important waterways in Europe. Its heyday as a commercial transport route was during the late 19th century.
It grew in popularity as a leisure destination, reaching a peak in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Since then there has been a dramatic decrease in the use of the Thames as a waterway. 43 waterside boatyards have closed and the sites put to other uses since Stanfords Map of the River Thames was published in 1960.
Since 1980, the number of holiday hire boats registered on the Thames has fallen by 85 per cent, from 815 to 123 in 2004.
The number of privately-owned powered boats has dropped 30 per cent since 1990, from 12,993 to 9,049 in 2004.
The decline in boats since 1990 has reduced Environment Agency income to spend on the river by £7.2 million and resulted in a further £111 million being lost to the local economy.
Notwithstanding this decline, the river is home to 16 per cent of all the privately-owned powered boats on Britain’s inland waterways."

Time to reverse this trend. I call for the removal of boat licences and the BSS. I say we do as the Dutch do: The waterways are seen as transport infrastructure and paid for by the nation. There is no BSS in the Netherlands and there never will be.

 

[rickp]

[ QUOTE ]
I say we do as the Dutch do: The waterways are seen as transport infrastructure and paid for by the nation. There is no BSS in the Netherlands and there never will be.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think there are requirements for a licence to use a boat though?

Rick

 

[alistairedw]

[ QUOTE ]
I call for the removal of boat licences and the BSS.

[/ QUOTE ]

There isn't much point campaigning for unachievable aims. The next few years are going to be about trying to get the next round of licence increases down to minimal levels. Hopefully DEFRA will not have another farm payments cock up and there will be no need to further squeeze funding of the E.A.

I am happy to make a contribution towards river maintenance (through the licence), I just don't want to see big increases.

The long term decline in boat numbers is not down to licensing. I suspect the high cost of moorings is a much bigger factor driving boaters off the river.

 

[SimonA]

[ QUOTE ]
I suspect the high cost of moorings is a much bigger factor driving boaters off the river.

[/ QUOTE ]

And the lack of time many people have these days. I get very little spare time to spend out on my boat. Running a business and having a family are both huge constraints on my time. That probably also explains why there tends to be more old people on the rivers than young families.

 

[Thamesbank]

No licence requirements on Dutch waterways

Only the need to pass a test if you use a boat over 15 metres or faster than 20 kmh. No licences though

 

[rickp]

Re: No licence requirements on Dutch waterways

Thats not how it was explained to me by the guy who owns Elling -but perhaps I misunderstood.

Rick

 

[Thamesbank]

Re: No licence requirements on Dutch waterways

Try this site for info:

http://southernholland.angloinfo.com/countries/holland/sailing.asp

 

[byron]

[ QUOTE ]
I suspect the high cost of moorings is a much bigger factor driving boaters off the river.

[/ QUOTE ]


The problem with moorings often lays with the Planning Authorities, not the River Authorities. Take the stretch between Cleve and Wallingford, over 7 miles long but there's a distinct lack of moorings because S.Oxon don't want them, they made the Shillingford Bridge Hotel give up 50% of their moorings. Why? gawd only knows. Lack of moorings pushes up prices because there's no competition.

 

[pheran]

Re: No licence requirements on Dutch waterways

[ QUOTE ]
Thats not how it was explained to me by the guy who owns Elling -but perhaps I misunderstood

[/ QUOTE ] Think you must have done. I keep my boat in Holland and do not need to buy a licence. There is (maybe was?) a form of registration for 'schnelboten' ie capable of more than 11 Kts (in Englsh money) but I'm not sure that even this still exists, at least for visiting boats

 

[rickp]

Re: No licence requirements on Dutch waterways

Thanks for clearing that up, both of you.

Rick

 

[Cliveshep]

Re: Details of Decline

I had 20 years off the Thames following a divorce. After a period up in East Anglia I'm now back down here (with a new wife and family) and another boat.

What I have seen down here bears out what an aquaintance of mine in the Hire Boat business ( A Director of the Company mentioned below) told me when I bought our ex-hire Ocean 30 up in Norfolk. He told me "we are giving up all of our interests on the Thames, and selling off the boats, most of which we have brought back up here to the yard (Richardsons of Stalham on the Broads). The best we have kept, most we are selling-off. We have reduced our fleet from over 700 boats down to 300 and we are still reducing".

The reason?

The high costs of maintainence especially getting engineer's out on breakdowns which simply did not prove economical. These spiralling costs led to higher rates for hire, and this cut business. Also in the equation was the Licensing/ Insurance costs, BSS, and associated costs, and fuel costs which he admitted were not so significant.

I do not think Richardsons are alone in this thinking, last Summer we cruised from Shepperton to above Lechlade, we noticed a couple of small hire yards in Reading, were not sure of Benson Cruiser Station which used to be huge, there was also a small fleet at Old Windsor.

The loss of or severe reduction in numbers of the hire fleets has to have a direct bearing on loss of revenue from licensing and the numbers of boats about. Missing too last year was the ever popular sport of watching novices get it all wrong at locks and keeping the more experienced amused. Mind you, I recall we always tried to help by passing on useful (yes really!) tips on boat handling. In those days we never bought fenders, passing hire fleets on a Saturday afternoon always brought rich pickings floating down river by evening, plus boat hooks, mops etc and once a child! (To be fair, the parents did notice they'd lost it and came back to look)

We were out over the August Bank Holiday, we hardly had to wait at locks at all unlike back in the 70's and 80's when you could stooge around for an hour or more, paint the top and cook a 3 course meal whilst waiting.

I did notice one facet of skippers not prevalent in the 70's and 80's and it is to their credit in the new millenia. Back in the old days if it was a "gin palace" passing and you only had an Elysian/Freeman/Seamaster/Norman etc thay passed with eyes averted and never ever gave you a cheerful wave. There was a class system operating it seemed. I have to say that off Thames there appeared to be no such snobbery!

These days they pretty much always return a wave or even wave first, and always have time for a chat at locks. That's much better! Maybe the boating fraternity earnt a reputation for snobbery and standoffishness that leaves "Joe Public" with little sympathy for them or their hobby or environment?
If that is so we ought to work hard to dispell the notion.

Lasst year we took a whole family aboard for a lock to lock trip, the kids had never been on a boat and neither had the parents, it gave them a real thrill and gave us a buzz as well. They were hanging around watching and clearly wistfull so on a wild spur-of-the-moment thing I asked them if they'd like a ride to the next lock "at their own risk". I got mobbed in the rush and they loved it. I even let the kids have a go at the helm (if you saw or took avoiding actions from an Ocean 30 describing wild figure "S" manouvres last year it was probably us - sorry!)

I guess where I'm coming from is if boats are in decline, we need a wider support-base in our fight for the things we want. You can bet that family view us as (a) human beings (b) not snobs either (c) jolly lucky for us to be able to afford a boat and (d) how nice of us to share a little of it.

What do you other owners think?

 

[Oen]

Excellent thoughts. Really.

All it calls for is the overthrow of our unelected 'government' and an adoption of some of the political principles that make the Netherlands such a pleasure to visit!

See you at Westminster with the gunpowder!

 

[Oen]

Oh, and the BSS is a load of B***S***. Unreasonable requirements written by [word removed] who wouldn't know a safe boat if you let them helm it... Not that you ever would!

Proud to have many more sea miles in boats that wouldn't pass the BSS than would... As should be many professional mariners.

 

[Oen]

...and lifeboatmen...