MBACT is delighted to see the work being undertaken between Five Locks Basin and Bridge 47 on the Mon & Brec Canal. Contractors have been appointed by Torfaen County Borough Council to cut back overgrown offside vegetation which was impeding navigation. The specialist contractors, who hail from Bridgwater, have been assisted using a paddle-wheeled boat equipped with cutting arm and rake, well suited for this sort of operation.
The work covers the ¾ mile navigable section within Torfaen Council’s ownership, which includes Five Locks Basin, Cwmbran Tunnel, and the new moorings south of Bridge 46 within Taylor Wimpey’s new housing development.
The work has made a very significant visual improvement and opened up the canal channel to full navigational width which we hope will encourage more boaters to venture south. We will be encouraging Glandŵr Cymru, The Canal and River Trust in Wales, to now follow suit on their section to the north.
Many thanks to Mike Spokes for the header photo of the boat on the canal. Posted with Mike’s permission.
