Following recent restrictions on our work due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Canal & River Trust is starting to get back to our planned programme of towpath and access improvements on the Grand Union Canal to bring better towpaths to West London.
We are about to start improvement works between Alperton (Manor Farm Road) and Greenford Railway Bridge from 20th July:
· We are returning to complete the final surface dressing, following the towpath widening last year. The towpath and access points will need to be closed in short sections, with diversions in place, for up to two weeks in total. Detail of the closure can be found on our notifications page. The canal will remain open to navigation and mooring during these works.
Elsewhere, the following works are underway or starting soon:
Towpath improvements are currently being undertaken between High Street Yiewsley and Trout Road by Hillingdon Council’s contractors. These improvements started on 6th July and are expected to last until October. During the improvements the towpath and access points are closed with diversions in place and moorings are suspended. Details of the closure are on our notifications page.
· We will be improving the towpath between Station Road in Hayes and Old Stockley Road near Stockley Park from August. The towpath currently has gravel surfaces of varying widths which will be upgraded to provide a smoother, wider and more level surface along its length. Bank space for casual moorings will be retained. During the improvements the towpath and access points will need to be closed in short sections with diversions in place and moorings will be suspended. Our Quietway webpage and notifications page will be updated with more details soon.
The improvements are part of Canal & River Trust’s Grand Union Canal Cycleway (Quietway) project, which is transforming over 16 miles of towpath between Paddington and West Drayton into safer, more accessible spaces, in partnership with Transport for London and the London Boroughs of Hillingdon, Ealing and Brent.
Separate from the towpath improvements being undertaken by the Trust there are also other projects underway on the Paddington to West Drayton route;
We are rebuilding the River Crane Aqueduct parapet east of Hayes and the towpath is currently closed from The Parkway (A312) to Nestles Bridge, Hayes, with a diversion in place. This work is expected to be completed by October 2020. More information can be found on the notifications page.
National Grid are starting a two-year project to decommission their high voltage electricity cables which are buried in the towpath between Willesden and Lisson Grove. The first stretch to be decommissioned will be from Old Oak Lane to Scrubs Lane between July and November 2020, and the towpath surface will be improved as part of the project. There will be mooring suspensions and towpath closures with diversions in place; do please allow extra time for your journey. More details on the cable decommissioning project are on the dedicated cable decommissioning project webpage and notifications page.
The Grand Union Canal Cycleway (Quietway) towpath improvement programme updates can be found at:
https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/bettertowpaths
If you need to contact the project team for further information, please email [email protected].
Thanks – from the Grand Union Canal Cycleway project team