Should our canals be made into roads?

[Green Web]

Canals are often the most direct routes for connecting major built up conurbations, yet all these major convenient major routes are wasted and mostly preserved to appease the eco types / champagne socialists and other selfish rich elitists who want a boat along with their nice home in the suburbs.

 

Canals are man made and was originally designed solely to move goods and people, at present they're redundant and would go along way to ease congestion and could easily be concreted roads for light traffic.

[TheGuy]

I think the roads should be made into canals

 

Seriously though, the canal network ought to be made better use of; perhaps they could be used to transport goods and people again.

[denlin]

I think the roads should be made into canals.

 

They were in 2007

[Conrod]

Canals are often the most direct routes for connecting major built up conurbations, yet all these major convenient major routes are wasted and mostly preserved to appease the eco types / champagne socialists and other selfish rich elitists who want a boat along with their nice home in the suburbs.

Instead of enjoying your jealousy, why not work for it and get yourself a boat and a nice home in the suburbs? Then you'd probably find that your neighbours in those suburbs are less selfish than you think.

 

Canals are man made and was originally designed solely to move goods and people, at present they're redundant and would go along way to ease congestion and could easily be concreted roads for light traffic.

I assume you haven't costed it.

 

How much access is there from the current road infrastructure to the canals?

How many new roads would be needed to connect the canals to roads?

How much landfill would be needed to filll the canals?

 

How much would all of this cost?

[muddycoffee]

A lot of the canals i've seen are not really wide enough to be roads, also far from connecting useful locations together, canals tend to connect locations that were useful 200 years ago before they were made mostly redundant by the railways.

[alchresearch]

I think the roads should be made into canals

 

Seriously though, the canal network ought to be made better use of; perhaps they could be used to transport goods and people again.

 

They do. The Manchester Ship Canal carries a staggering amount of goods, and they're looking into setting up a new waterbus to carry shoppers and footy supporters from the centre to Old Trafford and Trafford Centre.

[Tony]

Bridges are the biggest technical reason why not that comes to mind.

 

Beyond that they provide important habitats.

[bullerboY]

Canals are often the most direct routes for connecting major built up conurbations, yet all these major convenient major routes are wasted and mostly preserved to appease the eco types / champagne socialists and other selfish rich elitists who want a boat along with their nice home in the suburbs.

 

Canals are man made and was originally designed solely to move goods and people, at present they're redundant and would go along way to ease congestion and could easily be concreted roads for light traffic.

Redundant! it's a long time since you have seen a canal,as for champagne socialists thats rubbish,most people I know are hard working or have worked hard to buy a boat to escape the rat race and enjoy some freedom,others may have had financial problems and this is all that they can afford to live a decent in.Get yourself down to Tinsley and talk to some boaters I bet you change your outlook then.

[altus]

Bridges are the biggest technical reason why not that comes to mind.

I'd have thought the tunnels would provide a bigger one.

[Cyclone]

They're generally just too small aren't they, and the bridges and tunnels already mentioned, and the steep gradients where locks had to be put in.

The Worksop Chesterfield canal for example, if you replace the canal itself and the tow path, it's probably just wide enough for a 2 lane A road, hardly going to change the world is it!