Moor or Less: Moorings on London’s Waterways

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Nov 2013 Moorings on London’s Waterways

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Extra moorings and facilities are needed on London’s waterways to help address hotspots of overcrowding as increasing numbers of Londoners are turning to living on the water, our new report says. With house prices and rents rising to record levels in London, the report says more people are choosing to live on a boat as a more affordable option. Yet, the number of moorings and facilities, such as water supply and waste disposal, has not increased in line with demand. We set out a number of recommendations that we think can help address the overcrowding and improve relations between the different people who use the waterways.

Transcript of Moor or Less: Moorings on London’s Waterways

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Nov 2013Moorings on London’s Waterways An investigation on behalf of the Environment Committee

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1 • London is home to 100 miles of canals and 42 miles of the River Thames

• Overall 3 per cent of London is covered by water

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Jenny Jones, AM, launched an investigation on behalf of the Environment Committee into moorings on London’s waterways.

It looked at the demand for and supply of moorings, the impact of the growing popularity of the waterways and any steps that could help address issues of concern

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3We suggest the authorities should look at ways of increasing moorings on canals and the River Thames. We also recommend a new trial of community moorings to help meet demand

With house prices and rents soaring, we found some people are choosing to live on boats as a more affordable option. As many as 10,000 people could now be living on the capital’s waterways. Yet mooring and facilities have not increased in line with demand

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4We suggest that Canal and River Trust should ensure that as far as possible towpaths have soft verges, mooring rings and bollards

Boats can moor at rings, bollards or put pegs in soft banks, but on some stretches of London’s canals, the whole bank and towpath is hard surface.

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5We call on the Canal and Rivers Trust to review facilities and lighting at existing sites to ensure they are sufficient and produce a new map to highlight less crowded locations near transport links

We heard overcrowding at certain spots can contribute to problems with air and noise pollution, plus navigational challenges. Overcrowding tends to result from a need to be near facilities and transport links, plus security concerns

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6We suggest relevant organisations should support work to engage better with boating and waterside communities and people also need to work together to resolve local issues around pollution

We found communication is central to tackling some of the current issues on London’s waterways. However, this can be a challenge especially if boaters have no postal address, landline and erratic mobile phone connections

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7We want planning authorities to ensure that waterside developments do not detract from the waterways and their uses, including residential moorings. Future changes to the London Plan should include a policy to increase moorings.

We heard how creating more moorings on inland waterways could help relieve the pressure on towpaths

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To read the report and find out more about the investigation, please visit:

www.london.gov.uk/moorings