I'm sure the Thames was very much busier?

[Medskipper]

It was a lovely day today so my wife and I drove to Sheperton lock and had a nice lunch by the river at Thames Court.
Now it's been 25 years since I cut my teeth on the Thames in my first boat a Birchwood 25.
We chatted to the lock keeper who said it was quiet and went on to say far fewer people are boating these days! Why?
When I was enjoying the wonderful Thames it was packed with boats, it took ages waiting to get in and out of a lock. But today with the sun shining and the temperature more like Spain I counted two or three boats at best each time the lock was used.
Is this typical of the Thames these days?

 

[capnfishy]

In a word, yes, boat traffic has been in decline since the late 1980s and the last 3 years in particular. And then there are still crazy days like at Boveney last week where it took 90 minutes to lock through.

 

[boatone]

In a word, yes, boat traffic has been in decline since the late 1980s and the last 3 years in particular. And then there are still crazy days like at Boveney last week where it took 90 minutes to lock through.

Unfortunately, nobody seems to give a damn. Not the EA's job to bring boats back on the river. Licence fees probably the highest on any waterway, fewer moorings, fewer lock keepers.

And now we await the result of the licences required in marinas appeal to see if there will be even less revenue. Annual budget down from £18.5 million in 2010 to under £11 million this year. Not only that but the EA aren't even being permitted to apply inflation only increases for next year. What a mess.

 

[Actionmat]

It's busy. If it wasn't, you could cruise up the Thames and find a mooring for the night at will. Yes. I'm sure there are fewer boats, but boats are bigger(by length if not width). Put the lack of traffic down to it being a scorcher and people didn't want to lose the spot they bagged. I bet it was packed at Lady Lindsay's Lawn and Hampton Court, Windsor etc..

 

[oldgit]

It's busy. If it wasn't, you could cruise up the Thames and find a mooring for the night at will. Yes. I'm sure there are fewer boats, but boats are bigger(by length if not width). Put the lack of traffic down to it being a scorcher and people didn't want to lose the spot they bagged. I bet it was packed at Lady Lindsay's Lawn and Hampton Court, Windsor etc..

Less traffic on the road but no room at the "inn".

The time when people actually bought a boat and used it for their rigid regulation 2 weeks holiday has perhaps long gone. Its off to France or Italy for some and probably Spain for the rest of us. A last minute boating weekend to escape the interminal Olympics if the weather looks promising, will more likely be the order of the day.
On the other hand a vast army of invading retirees from the badlands of Coronation Street and Birmingham with little else to do but spend their defined benefit pensions are drifting slowly from public mooring to public mooring with no real intention of going anywhere in hurry.
Add to that the increasing numbers of people living aboard displaced by a disfunctional housing system preventing them from being able to afford a decent home,trying to remain in one location as long as possible..... ?

 

[CX54WEK]

I don't think it is just the Thames that seems to be quieter.

We have seen fewer boats on the move this year yet there does seem to be an increase in boats that have taken up residence on visitor moorings.

I think peoples idea of boating has changed and from I can see not necessarily for the better. People are using it as a cheaper form of housing and are not really interested in boating, more how long they can get away with being rooted to the spot before being moved on.

Sad really as it reduces the available moorings for those of us who do genuinely want to cruise around and explore the waterways.

 

[ogod]

My first year on the Thames and I'm surprised how quiet it is. Getting to the marina is hard work on the motorways - traffic jams, roadworks, school hols etc but when you arrive at said mooring it's like a graveyard and just a sprinkling of empty berths...