You think you have lock issues?

[No Regrets]

I have been reading all the Lock threads for a while now, and have concluded a few things.

Obviously they are in my humble opinion, and open to discussion...

1/ The locks on the Thames are, by and large, top quality and state of the art, in lock terms at least.

2/ Locks are adequately maintained, and apart from a few hiccups, reliable.

3/ Compared to other Rivers, e.g Nene, Lea...we are well served.

Now for a moment, ignoring the emotive and important issue of Lock Keepers and Flooding, which are an entirely different matter, I feel the River licence is still good value, even with patchy manned service.

£400 per annum (30 footer) for 'All you can use' service is, dare I say, stinking cheap judging by the price of a pint...

Thats not to say this is worth hassling for better service, but if all else fails, I really don't see a big issue under current economic circumstances.

For the record, The Lock Keepers issue is something I have both campaigned for, and successfully petitioned Parliament for, in addition to Emailling my MP, Grant Schapps. The flooding issue isn't IMHO a problem, as I can't see anybody wanting to be responsible for the results...

Quite a few hours walking the Dogs along various Towpaths, and seeing the facilities, make me feel rather smug, especially looking at the price of BW licences!!

 

[oldgit]

Amen.

 

[Riverleak]

I have been reading all the Lock threads for a while now, and have concluded a few things.

Obviously they are in my humble opinion, and open to discussion...

1/ The locks on the Thames are, by and large, top quality and state of the art, in lock terms at least.

2/ Locks are adequately maintained, and apart from a few hiccups, reliable.

3/ Compared to other Rivers, e.g Nene, Lea...we are well served.

Now for a moment, ignoring the emotive and important issue of Lock Keepers and Flooding, which are an entirely different matter, I feel the River licence is still good value, even with patchy manned service.

£400 per annum (30 footer) for 'All you can use' service is, dare I say, stinking cheap judging by the price of a pint...

Thats not to say this is worth hassling for better service, but if all else fails, I really don't see a big issue under current economic circumstances.

For the record, The Lock Keepers issue is something I have both campaigned for, and successfully petitioned Parliament for, in addition to Emailling my MP, Grant Schapps. The flooding issue isn't IMHO a problem, as I can't see anybody wanting to be responsible for the results...

Quite a few hours walking the Dogs along various Towpaths, and seeing the facilities, make me feel rather smug, especially looking at the price of BW licences!!

Well I wouldn't like to say stinkin' cheap but think they represent value for money to some extent. However the issue is there are a large number of users who own and keep boats on a finite budget, and by increasing charges it may mean that the ever stretched purse will at some point be empty,there are many pensioners amongst them, the first casualty unfortunately is the luxury of their boat, so therefore being less boats registered, causing increased fee's for the remainder to fund the service, and slowly the river dies off. I witnessed the busier days in 1980,s and that was a fun vibrant place to be, owning a small boat back then was cheap, affordable and easy, nowaday's there is a real lack of small affordable boats to encourage new users to the delights of boating on the Thames and increasing the number of registered boats.

 

[No Regrets]

I accept that of course, and I'm also a pensioner, and work part time to pay for boating!!

However, small boats cost less. A 16 footer would be around £200 per annum wouldn't it?

Looks cheap compered with renting!

I reckon a typical Shetland might be moored for £1500, licenced and insured for £300, and the remaining fuel etc around £300 per annum.

Thats less than the cost of a half decent holiday for two, and offers many weekends away!?

 

[Deefor]

I accept that of course, and I'm also a pensioner, and work part time to pay for boating!!

However, small boats cost less. A 16 footer would be around £200 per annum wouldn't it?

Looks cheap compered with renting!

I reckon a typical Shetland might be moored for £1500, licenced and insured for £300, and the remaining fuel etc around £300 per annum.

Thats less than the cost of a half decent holiday for two, and offers many weekends away!?

Yep, my sort of boat ownership these days minus the £1500 marina costs but I do have to pay for slipways.

My boat & trailer cost around £5k, licence & insurance at £295, fuel at 1lt/hour. I agree, the cost of a few good holidays but then I've still got some equity left with the boat which I intend to keep for a few seasons. Even today, someone at work offered me £5k without being prompted .

So over the next couple of years, the boat will owe me very little and I'll have had some great times on the cheap on the river.

 

[No Regrets]

At the sub £30k level, most boats don't lose any real value, some appreciate a little!

 

[the_wanderer]

Quite happy.

Hi.

Despite all the gripes on this website and having trailered my little boat to the canals, Norfolk Broads, River Severn, Rivers Lea and Stort, the Gt Ouse and Fens and having spent a week on a hire boat on the Canal du Nivernais where the lock keepers almost demand a "tip" I can say that the Thames is the "bees nees".

Perhaps we should all count our blessings and appreciate what a wonderful river we have.

Ok, sometimes the locks for whatever reason cannot be manned but hopefully we all have a bit of grey matter and it is not rocket science, if you will forgive the cliche, to work them. I say this with due deference to the keepers whose duties encompass much more than just working a lock and deserve our respect.

No doubt there will some people with massively bigger boats than mine who will not have this view.

Regards.

Alan.

 

[TrueBlue]

Well I wouldn't like to say stinkin' cheap but think they represent value for money to some extent. However the issue is there are a large number of users who own and keep boats on a finite budget, and by increasing charges it may mean that the ever stretched purse will at some point be empty,there are many pensioners amongst them, the first casualty unfortunately is the luxury of their boat, so therefore being less boats registered, causing increased fee's for the remainder to fund the service, and slowly the river dies off. I witnessed the busier days in 1980,s and that was a fun vibrant place to be, owning a small boat back then was cheap, affordable and easy, nowaday's there is a real lack of small affordable boats to encourage new users to the delights of boating on the Thames and increasing the number of registered boats.

For once (!) I absolutely agree. Somehow ways must be found to bring back that buzz. If the outside public sees the River as a fun place to be then perhaps they'll come back.

If, on the other hand cost rise steeply they won't even bother.

Most folk posting here are quite able and even willing to work the locks if they have to - but I doubt that new entrants would be so happy. Locks are frightening the first time around and always for a small boat.

On another post someone has compared EA licences with BW, that is not a reasonable comparison as the cost of mooring on their waters is at least half the cost of marinas on the River.

What caring people here are trying to do is more of a damage limiting exercise. Rather than demanding that back office staff be reduced to maintain the current level of service, as some would have it, the more moderate folks are trying to maintain some form of service withing the much reduced budget.

As with most walks of life it's the tiny minority that make the running. The majority are silent and probably don't give a jot, that is until it's too late - then they squeal with indignation.