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The 4-lock staircase, part of Watford Locks on the Grand Union Canal
Watford Locks (grid reference SP592688) is a group of seven locks on the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal, in Northamptonshire, England, famous for the Watford Gap service area.
The locks are formed (looking from the south), of two single locks, a staircase of four, and a final single lock. Together they lift the canal 54 feet 1 inch (16.48 m)[1] to the "Leicester Summit", which it maintains all the way to Foxton Locks. The four staircase locks are equipped with working
side ponds which are used to save water.
The locks were built to carry narrowboats, and the system was opened in 1814.[2] In the early 20th century there were plans to build an inclined plane similar to that at Foxton as part of a scheme to allow the passage of barges, but the plan was abandoned when the inclined plane at Foxton proved uneconomic.[3]
When the Grand Union Canal was formed in 1929, there were further proposals to widen the flight as part of the modernisation going on elsewhere on the Grand Union's network, but these plans did not develop further.
The locks are hemmed in by the Roman Watling Street (now the A5 road), the M1 motorway, and the West Coast Main Line railway, which all fit through the narrow Watford Gap, between two hill systems.
The locks are usually supervised during the cruising season from Easter to October, with the locks padlocked outside permitted hours. This is done to prevent problems arising from misuse and to ensure that queues are kept to the minimum. Boaters operate the locks themselves under the lock keeper's supervision. On arrival at the top or bottom boaters should report to the lock keeper to register their arrival before attempting to operate the flight. At busy times there can often be a delay of two hours or more but transit of the flight takes approximately 45 minutes; it is made quicker by the fact that the locks are narrow beam and the gates are light.
WatfordLocks (grid reference SP592688) is a group of seven locks on the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal, in Northamptonshire, England, famous...
level that passes Husbands Bosworth, Crick and ends with the Watford flight Alongside the locks is the site of the Foxton Inclined Plane, built in 1900 to...
the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal, which passes through the WatfordLocks just to the north of the gap. The historical geographic importance of...
other way. This list is not comprehensive. Bingley Five Rise Bow Locks WatfordLocks Caen Hill flight United Kingdom portal Transport portal Canals of the...
Soar and the locks and bridges are wide. Another Act of 1931[which?] authorised the widening of the locks at WatfordLocks and Foxton Locks, but with government...
Foxton Locks near Market Harborough, Leicestershire WatfordLocks in Northamptonshire Caen Hill Locks near Devizes, Wiltshire Fourteen Locks near Newport...
Harborough, Leicestershire Fourteen Locks – near Newport, South Wales Hatton Locks – Warwickshire WatfordLocks – Northamptonshire Helen Harris (1996)...
caissons. There was a plan to build a similar inclined plane at the WatfordLocks at the southern end of the canal's summit level. However, this was never...
locks on the Grand Union Canal and its branches. The Grand Union Canal (Main Line) runs from Salford Junction, Birmingham to Brentford, London. Locks...
reserve Syresham Sywell Country Park The Castle Theatre Towcester Museum WatfordLocks Wellingborough Museum Whittlewood Forest Wicksteed Park Gretton Barn...
wide-beam Foxton Inclined Plane, accompanied by a solution to bypass WatfordLocks, would allow wide-beam boats to traverse the Leicester Line of the Grand...
line of the Grand Junction from the east Midlands. Widening of the locks at Watford was also planned, but not carried through. Consideration was given...
time on 21 November by Louis van Gaal for a Premier League match against Watford, which Manchester United won 2–1. He received the number 39 squad number...
early example of co-operation resulted in the canals and locks reopening in 1967. Marple Locks on the Peak Forest Canal was chosen as the site for the...
November 2004. Retrieved 23 June 2009. "Vyvyan named as Sarries captain". Watford Observer. 5 August 2004. Retrieved 23 June 2009. "Vyvyan signs new deal...
Fareham 2 Fareham West 2 Hill Head 2 Hill Head 2 Hook-with-Warsash 2 Locks Heath 2 Locks Heath 2 Park Gate 3 Park Gate 2 Portchester East 3 Portchester Castle...
Association over Eli's running of the club, secretly masterminded by Barker, locks all of the staff and players in the ground. The game is called off and during...
80 mi (130 km) north of the South Unit, on U.S. Route 85, just south of Watford City, North Dakota. Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch is located between the North...
trains can be routed via Crewe or Stoke-on-Trent, the Pullmans served Watford Junction, Wilmslow and Stockport, so were all routed via Crewe. Another...
Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 7 July 2022. "They are the best, no debate". Watford Observer. 27 February 2007. Retrieved 7 July 2022. Aldridge, Alex (19 November...
band won a £250 cash prize in a beat-group competition organised by the Watford Borough Council and sponsored by the London Evening News. They signed a...
the upper Mississippi has 29 locks and dams and averaged 61.3 million tons of cargo annually from 2008 to 2011, and its locks are closed in the winter. Historically...
2012). "Police van parked in Tesco Express petrol station forecourt". Watford Observer. Retrieved 7 May 2023. "Recycled police van deters the thieves"...
its own route from Oxford to London Euston, via Bicester, Bletchley and Watford; and in 1864 a third route, also to Paddington, running via Thame, High...
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