Calls for work to improve Wigan canal towpath

Politicians and activists are calling on waterways bosses to improve the condition of a stretch of the route which has become churned up..
Coun Chris Ready and Laura Flynn on the muddy towpathCoun Chris Ready and Laura Flynn on the muddy towpath
Coun Chris Ready and Laura Flynn on the muddy towpath

Lobbying is under way for improvements to be made to the stretch of towpath on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal between New Springs and Haigh Country Park.

Taking a walk by the water has become an even more popular activity during lockdown but the presence of all the extra boots, coupled with a winter involving snow, frost, thaw and rain, has left the route extremely muddy.

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Now Coun Chris Ready, cabinet member for communities at Wigan Council, and Labour community officer for Aspull New Springs Whelley ward Laura Flynn are calling on the Canal and River Trust to do something about it.

They say it is vital families have plenty of places to get outdoors and enjoy regular exercise while Covid-19 restrictions remain in place.

Coun Ready said: “The towpath at Top Lock looks great and Haigh Hall is fantastic for walking. But this section is in a really bad way and is causing real problems for the huge number of keep-fit walkers who through the pandemic have increased fourfold.

“We have written to the Canal and River Trust who are in charge of waterways asking for their help in this matter.”

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Ms Flynn added: “I use this path on a regular basis with my two girls,Jessica who is nine and four-year-old Grace.

“It really is in a bad state. Cyclists and pedestrians are struggling to use the path.

“It needs putting right, particularly during lockdown when more people than ever are using it.”

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