EA vs CaRT.

oldgit said:
Aka the public purse ? :)
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Yes - CRT get a fixed grant of ca £40M per annum from the government (but it starts to reduce in a couple of years - hence the panic re-branding). They cannot go back and ask for more - their only recourse is to appeal for further donations from the public. The Middlewich breach appeal has raised a measly £25K.

The EA already has a huge £1billion pa grant from the Government to carry out its various tasks - and the Thames navigation is about 1% of that. So if a catastrophic failure hits the Thames DEFRA/EA does have funds that could be used - just needs a switch of priorities.

Unfortunately this can work both ways - Boat registration fees went up last year so the funds granted to Thames navigation were reduced by £200,00 - result no more money for the river.
 
You heard it here first.

Apparently some whinging among the canal denizens about CaRT charging extra for wide beam barges apparently because CaRT are having serious concerns about the ever increasing numbers of new build canal boats with ever increasing beams which are causing serious damage to under side of bridges due to roof widths with no tumble home, squeezing on to the navigations designed only for traditional vessels.
 
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Re: You heard it here first.

oldgit said:
Apparently some whinging among the canal denizens about CaRT charging extra for wide beam barges apparently because CaRT are having serious concerns about the ever increasing numbers of new build canal boats with ever increasing beams which are causing serious damage to under side of bridges due to roof widths with no tumble home, squeezing on to the navigations designed only for traditional vessels.
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Are you sure? It seems to be a campaign orchestrated by IWA assisted by the CRT 'consultation' which became a 'democratic' vote by a mainly narrowboat constituency that wide beam boats (including wide cruisers beloved by Medway boaters) should pay more regardless of logic or argument. There are lots of unhappy wide beam boaters on CRT rivers and wide canals who are limited in their cruising range and now being 'invited' to pay more.

The 'serious damage' is more likely to be to the shiny paint than the bridge!

Anyone for Harmonisation and bring Medway into line with Thames and charge by area? (Definitely tongue in cheek!)
 
Re: You heard it here first.

The OP was talking about CART taking over the Thames. Surely they would have to be some agreement (before CART came anywhere near taking over) the "preferred size" on the Thames is wide beam and under 40' - perhaps then penalising all the 60'+ narrowboats rather than 22' Freemans etc.
 
Re: You heard it here first.

Andy Soper said:
Are you sure? )The 'serious damage' is more likely to be to the shiny paint than the bridge!
Anyone for Harmonisation and bring Medway into line with Thames and charge by area? (Definitely tongue in cheek!)
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The problem.....
Cabins of larger barges increasingly gouging out chunks on undersides of old brick bridges !
Suspect possibly to lock chambers as well ?
Only now becoming apparent after inspections.
Eventually needing restoration, somebody is going to have to pay.
As for harmonisation bring it on.
Looking forward to approaching upper Medway locks with two smiling uniformed chaps eagerly awaiting my proffered ropes and being able to push a button or two to open/shut gates and raise/lower sluices out of hours.
The chance of a tea stall or ice cream stand would be nice as well as the increase in EA public moorings that would obviously follow.
How much can we budget for the new uniforms :)



Any idea of a date yet .
 
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Re: You heard it here first.

oldgit said:
As for harmonisation bring it on.
Looking forward to approaching upper Medway locks with two smiling uniformed chaps eagerly awaiting my proffered ropes and being able to push a button or two to open/shut gates and raise/lower sluices out of hours.
The chance of a tea stall or ice cream stand would be nice as well as the increase in EA public moorings that would obviously follow.
How much can we budget for the new uniforms :)
Any idea of a date yet .
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In your dreams ! Any attempt at harmonisation is more likely to reduce all waterways to the lowest common denominator.
Suggest you wind your neck in and stop stirring up trouble ‘from the margins’ or your may find the natives less than welcoming next time you decide to enjoy the allure of the non tidal Thames!

(posted mildly in jest but, regrettably, with more than a grain of truth re lowest common denominators ?)
 
Re: You heard it here first.

boatone said:
In your dreams ! Any attempt at harmonisation is more likely to reduce all waterways to the lowest common denominator.
Suggest you wind your neck in and stop stirring up trouble ‘from the margins’ or your may find the natives less than welcoming next time you decide to enjoy the allure of the non tidal Thames!

(posted mildly in jest but, regrettably, with more than a grain of truth re lowest common denominators ��)
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Have already decided to travel only during the hours of darkness and am about to cover the boat in a wartime boat camouflage paint job to confuse the locals.:)
 
Re: You heard it here first.

oldgit said:
Apparently some whinging among the canal denizens about CaRT charging extra for wide beam barges apparently because CaRT are having serious concerns about the ever increasing numbers of new build canal boats with ever increasing beams which are causing serious damage to under side of bridges due to roof widths with no tumble home, squeezing on to the navigations designed only for traditional vessels.
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I've been following this saga very closely but it's the first time that I've heard that CRT are concerned about widebeams damaging the bridges. Where did you get that story from? From my own observations I would suggest that most of the damage to canal bridges is caused by all the novice narrowboaters who scrape and bang into them constantly.
 
Re: You heard it here first.

We've had several widebeams damage Henley Bridge, so no surprise they tend to hit narrower canal bridges. As a casual observation, it seems there's a high % of new widebeam owners who simply have no experience of steering boats and are often terrified themselves of going into locks etc.
 
Re: You heard it here first.

If I heard someone I was talking to correctly, he said his licence for a 45ft NB was around £250 on the Wey, double that for the Thames(which is the same as my 31ft and a joke considering he hogs half as much again of mooring space) and considerably more for a CRT licence. Around £1200 for a Gold one.

If CRT took over, who thinks we'd see a huge hike in licence tax?
 
Why the angst against narrow boats? I keep a boat on the east coast so have no axe to grind. However, for sure, the Upper Thames would be a more attractive river with narrow boats. Rather than being full of high rise, all white, plastic boats?
 
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