In 2016 most of the Selbeck Canal was a dry, silted ditch. After a decade of volunteer digs, lock rebuilds and reedbed planting, this is what changed along the same stretch of water.
TOWPATH VISITORS A YEAR
Counted at four points
386,000
↑ 704%
from 48,000 in 2016
2016
2026
WHAT WE MEASURED
Same fourteen miles, same survey method, ten years apart.
2016
Before the first dig
2026
This summer's survey
CHANGE
Miles open to boats
Of the 14.2 miles from Selbeck Basin to Pitchford
1.5
→
14.2
↑ 847%
Locks in working order
Out of the 19 locks on the line
4
→
19
↑ 375%
Volunteer days a year
Work parties, towpath rangers and lock crews
1,150
→
9,400
↑ 717%
Species recorded
Plants, birds, fish and mammals on the summer survey
64
→
187
↑ 192%
Phosphate in the water
Milligrams per litre, yearly average. Lower is better
0.42
→
0.15
↓ 64%
Fly-tipping reports
Logged with the trust each year. Lower is better
318
→
41
↓ 87%
SOURCES
Selbeck Canal Trust towpath and wildlife surveys, 2016 and 2026. Visitor numbers come from four automatic towpath counters; water samples are taken monthly at Pitchford Lock by the trust's volunteer testing team. Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number.
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