Saltaire to Bingley Five-Rise Locks
The new road bridge over the canal here is quite a dominant feature, a little tunnel that separates the semi-rural outskirts of Bingley from the denser urban centre. Immediately beyond is the fairly recent mill conversion of the former Britannia Mills, a large scale wool worsted factory, built in the late 1800s, one of several mills and industrial premises that existed alongside the canal in Bingley in the 19th and 20th centuries. I don't know when it ceased production but it lay empty and some of the buildings were demolished, until it was revived as apartments in the old three storey shed with a couple of new apartment blocks added on the site too.
The pattern of old industrial buildings interspersed with newer residential builds continues along the canal.
Leading up from the canal, some of the rows of Victorian terraced housing still stand, gradually giving way to newer and less dense residential areas as you progress up the steep valley side.
There's a family of swans living in this area (not the same ones that hang around in Saltaire).
Some of the old mill chimneys have been left standing, proud monuments to a different era.
Around the Park Road bridge, the vegetation in the canal is particularly dense, with a large patch of reeds encroaching on the navigation. They look quite pretty but will soon make the canal impassable if they're left to proliferate. This is the section of canal that was lifted and moved several yards. Just over that wall on the left, the bypass speeds through and right beside that is the railway, those steps leading down from Park Road to the station platform. There really wasn't a lot of room to slot a dual carriageway through, so hats off to the planners and engineers that squeezed it all in!
The vibrant mural that now decorates a gable end just beside the Park Road bridge has only recently been painted. It depicts moorhens, many of which frequent the canal. It is by Misc.Etc, sponsored by Bradford City of Culture 2025.
The planners and engineers must have had a good reason why they made the bypass not an actual bypass, but a "through-pass" instead; it sounds more complicated that way than if it had been a road outside the city.
ReplyDeleteI like it that the former industrial buildings have been converted into residential units, and hopefully, living so close to the canal doesn't mean the flats are constantly battling against humidity on their walls.
What you say about the vegetation in the canal I have also observed in Ripon Canal. It has been unusually warm and little fresh water came through; I guess sooner or later something will have to be done.