At our AGM - British Waterways Presents:
"Restoration and Connection to the National Network - the St. Helens (Sankey) Canal Pre-feasibilty Study"

Our guest speaker at the 2004 AGM was Stephen Pugmire, Project Engineer of British Waterways, who was introduced by Adrian Sains, also of British Waterways.

Six Local Authorities commissioned British Waterways to consider the restoration of the St. Helens Canal and the linkage of this canal to the national inland waterway network, taking into consideration engineering, environmental and economic issues. The North West Development Agency was appointed consultant to provide input on the economic issues.

Restoration of the Sankey Canal

The study was conducted in the light of the "Waterways for Tomorrow" initiative bearing in mind the Urban White Paper on the regeneration of brownfield sites. On a regional basis the Waterside Reclamation Strategy Document, Action for Sustainability, the Mersey Partnership and the Mersey Tourism Strategy were also taken into consideration. From the local viewpoint the St. Helens City Growth Strategy, the impact of the Halton Economic Development Zone and the Red Rose Regional Forest could all be relevant.

Stephen then gave an engineering review of WS Atkins' 1995 report on the proposals for the restoration of the Sankey. This made reference to an increase in air draft to match that of the Leeds Liverpool Canal, increased pedestrian headroom, an increase in the minimum channel width and a 120 year design life. It also identified problems such as the crossing of the M62, the need for special arrangements to dispose of contaminated fill north of the M62 and the need for the re-canalisation of the Sankey Brook adjacent to Dallam.

When considering the costs of restoring the Sankey the study recognised that Landfill Tax rate has now increased, but that land acquisition costs and aggregate tax had not been taken into account. Its final figure without these costs is £55M.

Although there are strategic planning benefits to be achieved with reference to the Unitary Development Plans of the Local Authorities, and there are unquantifiable improvements in liveability, a quantitative cost benefit analysis was not carried out. Benefits already identified include the East Side Regeneration in St. Helens, future development at the Fiddlers Ferry site, the regeneration of the Moss Bank area of Halton Waterfront and the proposed Omega Development in Warrington.

The study reached the conclusions that the restoration of the Sankey Canal was viable in engineering terms, given that some design problems could be overcome, that economic, social and environmental benefits exist, although these had not been quantified. It was suggested that funding be obtained for a further study.

The Link to the Leeds Liverpool Canal

The study looked at routes suggested by WS Atkins, SCARS, and BW itself. Areas with regeneration potential were identified through the UDPs, and included St. Helens Town Centre, Wigan, Tawd Vale in Skelmersdale, West Lancashire, and Kirkby in Knowsley.

Twelve alternative routes were considered to obtain "broad brush" construction costs (excluding land), to include an assessment of the length of new canal required, the number of locks, road and rail crossings etc. The statistics gathered were presented in the form of a table and the number of options narrowed down to a shortlist of three, via Pennington Flash, Skelmersdale and Wigan. Also required was a qualitative assessment of benefits but this was not in fact carried out for all the options. Some benefits were identified in St. Helens Town Centre in the form of the East Side Regeneration project, whilst the centre of Skelmersdale would obtain marked benefits as demonstrated at locations such as Stalybridge.

The proposed Kew Gardens of the North could also bring mutual benefits to a link north-east through Haydock.

The study also looked into non engineering issues such as wildlife habitats, water resources and planning policies in the areas traversed by the various routes.

The study concluded that the proposed link was viable in engineering terms, with costs varying from £31M to £58M according to the route selected. Economic, social and environmental benefits exist, although these had not been quantified. It was suggested that funding be obtained for a further study.

BW recommended that the authorities concerned adopt a planning policy to protect the existing and proposed lines of the canal and the link. Funding agencies should be lobbied in order to obtain funding for a full feasibility study. This should be commissioned at the earliest opportunity to include a full quantitative economic analysis. If the feasibility recommends the project is progressed then the necessary then the necessary funding needs to be obtained and the works carried out.

Below: The map of the routes initially under consideration, with the table showing the estimated costs calculated for each. Land purchase costs are not included.

Linkage into the Waterway Network - Initial Assessment

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