Barton

The finale to a walk along the Bridgewater Canal in Salford is Barton Swing Aqueduct, which attracts enthusiasts from around the world to marvel at this feat of engineering ingenuity.

Barton heritage

Originally constructed in 1761 as a stone aqueduct to take coal along the canal and across the River Irwell into Manchester, its inventor James Brindley is said to have locked himself away in a nearby hotel on the day of its opening, afraid that his creation would end in failure. To his delight it didn't and the original stone aqueduct was regarded as ‘one of the seven wonders of the canal age'. The remains of the stone aqueduct are dotted with the original stone masons marks. These unique symbols were etched into stone by the masons as a way of ensuring they were paid for the work they had done.

When the Manchester Ship Canal opened in 1894, by canalising the River Irwell, a new swing bridge was built to replace Brindley's aqueduct to allow larger vessels to travel along the ship canal. It is the world's first and only swing aqueduct and when open 800 tonnes of water is suspended in mid-air.

Proposals for Barton

In the long-term we envisage Barton will become the main entrance point for visitors. On the Trafford side of the canal there is enough space for new visitor facilities, which would become the starting point for boat trips along the canal.

Currently in Barton the environment for pedestrians is poor with the towpath narrowing sharply and the busy Barton Road encroaching up to the edge of the towpath.

To fully enjoy and appreciate the engineering ingenuity at Barton Aqueduct the it will need to be more accessible. Significant improvements need to be made to pedestrian safety across Barton Swing Bridge and to widening and resurfacing the towpath. Barton Aqueduct pocket park will also be remodelled and landscaped to open up views of the aqueduct and improve safety.

Proposals for Barton include:

Exciting ways for residents and visitors to learn about the heritage of the area, through information boards, new decorative railings, art works and events.
Bring to life the remains of Brindley's stone aqueduct through removing vegetation and installation of lighting.
New viewing platforms.
New paths and boardwalk over the wetland area in Barton Aqueduct pocket park to allow disabled users to visit.
A better, wider, towpath to allow easy access for the canal for walkers, cyclists and fishermen.
New facilities to tell people where to go and what to do.
Manage access to the Barton Aqueduct pocket park, particularly at evening time, to reduce anti-social behaviour.

Through a successful funding bid from Barton Fairshare we are able to get the ball rolling! Soon the aqueduct pocket park at Barton will be a hive of activity with opportunities to get involved in activities from clearing back the vegetation to pond dipping to making bat boxes.

You can download the masterplan for Barton along with the plans for the towpath (there are five of these, all showing a different part of the towpath) and Barton Aqueduct pocket park at the bottom of the page.

If you want to get involved in improving your local area, opportunities exist to undertake environmental improvements, clean-ups and heritage improvement schemes. Why not get involved and complete our online form.