News emerged over the summer of a proposal to build a rail depot to support the HS2 and Heathrow Express operations beside the canal.

The location is between Langley Park Road and Mansion Lane, and between the canal and the existing railway.

The edge of the site at the western end will come right up to the back of the towpath. There will be a severe impact on the residential boats at Highline moorings, some of which will be around 50M from the edge of the site. There will also be transitory adverse effect on the towpath experience for people walking or riding this section.

The consultation phase closed soon after the September Canal Festival. A number of interested parties - the Friends, the boatyard residents, and the CRT to name a few, have fed back into the consultation process within the published time limit, and at the time of writing are waiting to hear if they are to be called to speak or submit further.

Most of the parties we have worked with are seeking not to stop the development but to modify it to do less damage to the local interests without impairing the intended function of the maintenance facility. Our case hinges on leaving a bank of mature trees at the towpath boundary as a visual and acoustic shield and to serve as a wildlife corridor. We would also like to get this and some wetlands further along the site designated as a nature reserve to protect it in the longer term.

The proposal also includes modification to Mansion Lane (or Hollow Hill Lane at the southern approach) which is to be straightened where it passes under the railway line. The whole road could do with some improvement, it is already too narrow for the traffic it carries, and the sharp bend and blind corner where it crosses the canal has lead to numerous vehicle strikes to the brickwork and fencing. The towpath access emerges on a blind corner as the road kinks for the bridge. The CRT are already looking at what could be done here were HS2 funds available to rework the road bridge as part of the scheme.

HS2 consultation documents are already available from other web sites

The Canal Festival display board gives more information and a map, you can download it as a pdf here.