Lucy Wood reports…
THE Canal & River Trust is undertaking essential repairs to the Grade II-listed Holt Lock on the River Severn in Worcestershire.
The top and bottom gates of the 180-year-old lock are being repaired as part of a £280,000 project to maintain and improve the structure for boaters navigating the river. Work includes improvements to the lock cills and replacing loose brickwork and the lock ladders that run down into each chamber.
After initial inspections by divers in September, the lock has been drained so the work can be carried out.
A 100-tonne crane has been assisting with the removal and reinstallation of the lock gates, which each weigh 6.5 tonnes.
Holt Lock is located close to Holt Fleet Bridge, a Grade II-listed cast-iron arch bridge that was designed by famed civil engineer Thomas Telford. The lock was constructed in 1844 and is one of six on the 42½-mile River Severn navigation. It was originally built to take craft carrying up to 150 tonnes.
The work this autumn is an important project to keep the river navigable to boaters travelling between Stourport and Gloucester where the river is connected to the docks by Gloucester Lock, which is also due to be inspected and repaired this winter as part of the trust’s annual winter repair and conservation work to protect the nation’s waterways.
CRT construction manager Mark Abraham said: “We have used large pumps to pump water out of the chamber to allow us to build scaffolding and provide access to complete the work. We are installing steel dams that have been specially designed and fabricated for the lock gates as we address previous issues with leakage.
“The works have been timed to strike the balance between avoiding the summer months while getting work done before the periods of typically higher river flows on the Severn which would flood our sites. Once completed, not only will the repairs have helped to maintain this historic structure, but they will also deliver improvements for the boaters who use the lock when navigating the river for many years to come.”
