Canal restoration seeks go-ahead

The project at Loxwood will see the waterway cross the B2133

Proposals to restore a canal back to the way it was until the end of the 19th Century have been unveiled.

If planning permission is approved, the Wey & Arun Canal will cross the B2133 between Loxwood, in West Sussex, and Guildford, in Surrey.

The project will tunnel under the road near the Onslow Arms pub on the Guildford Road, lowering the level of the canal between new locks.

Work is scheduled to start early next year at a total cost of £1.2m.

Rural canal

Project manager for the Wey & Arun Canal Trust, Eric Walker, said the bridge was the most difficult part of the canal restoration.

"The road was realigned in the post war period and the angle between the road and the canal makes for a complex design.

"This is a beautiful rural canal and our aim is to enhance the availability of the canal to all its users - walkers, riders and boaters," he said.

The project will be carried out in three stages and is part of the national strategy to restore the navigable link between the Rivers Wey and Arun, and so recreate the direct water link between London and Littlehampton, in West Sussex.