Engineering

From East to West the major engineering works are as follows

Junction Canal

'New Cut'
Cost £3.5m and being delivered by Morrison Construction, the new cut will connect the existing Hanbury Locks to the edge of Droitwich town including linking to the existing M5 tunnel.

• 4 new locks including one staircase lock
• 1025m of new channel
• 1 Road Bridge
• Due for completion in early 2009

Canalisation
Between the new section of canal and Vines Park in the centre of Droitwich, the River Salwarpe will be canalised to carry boat traffic. This will involve some re-profiling of the river to create the correct navigation depth and width while retaining a natural offside to the channel.

Barge Canal

Barge Lock
The Barge Lock has undergone restoration work by the Waterways Recovery Group during the summer of 2008. Over 4 weeks, volunteers excavated over 150 tonnes of silt, removed an old dam structure and created new brick recesses for the lock ladders. British Waterways staff then fitted new gates. All the money for the restoration of this structure has been raised from donations to the national fundraising appeal.

Dredging
The first phase of dredging will commence in winter 2008, this will extend through Vines Park and out to lock one at Ladywood. The reeds will be cut back first and all dredging activity will be complete by the end of winter 2009. The second phase of dredging will commence at the end of 2009 when Coney Meadow Reedbed has fully established.

A38 Spill Weir
This is a flood weir that has undergone restoration by local and corporate volunteers over 2008. With funding from the local preservation trust, the 40-metre long weir has been brought back into good repair.

Lock 1 and 2
Volunteers will be undertaking the restoration work required to these locks over the course of 2008 and 2009. Much of the work will be bringing them up to safety standards for operational use. This will include cutting and bricking ladder recesses and installing bollards.

Lock 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
Restoration to all the above structures will be undertaken by Alun Griffiths Construction, work will include brick and structural improvements where required new gates and lock approaches.

A449 Crossing
The installation of a bridge under the A449 commenced in November 2008. The construction will involve installing 2 pilled walls and a concrete deck, which can then be excavated from each end. This method of creating a tunnel is called 'cut and cover' and will minimise the amount of traffic management required on the A449.

River entrance
The creation of the river entrance will be carried out after the A449 bridge construction in mid 2009. This will involve the dredging of a channel from lock eight into the river navigation and the construction of a landing platform for boats on the down stream bank.