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IWA Policy on Freight on Inland Waterways

Reviewed April 2016

Summary of policy

  • IWA supports the use and development of freight carriage on UK inland waterways, where this is sustainable in economic, environment and social terms.
  • IWA will lobby waterway authorities to maintain waterways to statutory standards and in suitable condition for modern freight carrying vessels where freight use is a real possibility.
  • IWA believes in multi-functional use of waterways by freight and leisure craft.
  • IWA will press navigation authorities to market and facilitate opportunities for freight traffic on the inland waterways.
  • IWA supports the continuing enhancement of waterway capacity and development of freight facilities to accommodate modern freight vessels on waterways with significant freight potential.
  • IWA will lobby Government and planning authorities to consider waterway freight transport in drawing up development plans and identifying (and protecting where appropriate) locations for industry and freight interchanges.
  • IWA supports the principle of safeguarding of wharves for freight where there are realistic traffic prospects and the wharf is suitably located for modern cargo operations.
  • IWA supports the continuation of Government funding, for example through grants, to encourage modal shift from road to water.
  • IWA will seek to raise awareness of the opportunities for and advantages of waterborne freight transport on UK inland waterways, in co-operation with other like-minded lobby groups.
  • IWA recognises the benefits of freight traffic on smaller waterways in encouraging retention of commercial vessels of heritage interest and in maintaining the channel cross-section.

 

1. Introduction

1.1. This is a policy statement by the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) which sets out the position with regard to freight traffic on inland waterways in Great Britain. It covers all types of freight traffic on all inland waterways within the remit of the annually published UK Government statistics on waterborne freight on inland waterways¹.
1.2. It begins by introducing the topic, sets out the background to inland freight waterways in the UK and describes barriers to the development of waterborne freight. Section 4 then sets out IWA’s policies.
1.3. The Inland Waterways Association is a registered charity, founded in 1946, which advocates the conservation, use, maintenance and development of the inland waterways of the British Isles and promotes their fullest use for appropriate commercial and recreational purposes.
1.4. From its earliest days, IWA’s founders were concerned to maintain freight traffic on the waterway system, as well as encouraging leisure boating and other uses. Since then, conditions have changed and IWA recognises that many smaller waterways are no longer suitable for large-scale freight carriage, although they can often support small scale operations. However, many larger gauge waterways have continued to be used for freight transport and have adapted to modern methods of freight handling, although barriers remain to the realisation of their full potential. Currently (in 2011) over 1000km of waterways are in regular use in the UK for larger scale freight traffic.
1.5. IWA set up the Inland Shipping Group in 1971 to investigate, promote and encourage the development of large scale inland water transport in Britain as a contribution to the solution of transport, resources and environmental problems. The group operates today as a sub-committee of IWA’s Navigation Committee known as the Inland Waterways Freight Group. IWA publications on waterborne freight are detailed in Appendix A.
1.6. Use of waterway transport can have environmental benefits in terms of reducing fuel use. Transporting the same tonnage of freight between two points by water instead of road has the potential to reduce by three quarters the amount of carbon dioxide emitted².
1.7. It is clear from examples of successful inland waterway traffic in the UK and elsewhere in Europe that our larger inland waterways can provide a viable and environmentally friendly means of transporting freight and that such freight operations can co-exist in harmony with other waterway uses.

2. The UK inland waterways and freight

2.1. As an island nation, the UK varies from some other European countries in having a long coastline, with most of its industrial centres situated on the coast or on estuaries with access for seagoing ships. Domestic coastal shipping (from UK origin to UK destination) accounts for about 21% of all domestic freight transport in the UK³ and many of the main opportunities for freight carriage on waterways are associated with traffic to and from ports near the coast or with inland penetration of seagoing vessels to serve inland ports.
2.2. IWA recognises that the opportunities for waterway freight carriage vary according to the characteristics of the waterway. For convenience, we have categorised the UK waterways freight network as follows:
  • principal inland freight waterways (most of which are managed by port authorities);
  • freight waterways defined as ‘Commercial Waterways’ by the Transport Act 1968 (managed by The Canal and River Trust (CRT));
  • other waterways with significant freight potential (managed by a variety of public bodies and port authorities);
  • smaller waterways (managed by the CRT, the Environment Agency and the Broads Authority, as well as a variety of other public and private bodies).

2.3. The characteristics of these categories and principal examples are set out in the table below.

 

CategoryDescriptionPrincipal
Principal inland freight waterways (about 980km)Can accommodate vessels in excess of 1000 tonnes payload;
Mostly tidal rivers or ship canals managed by port authorities		Humber and seaward parts of the rivers Trent and Yorkshire Ouse
Thames tideway and branches
Medway
Mersey/Manchester Ship Canal
Estuaries such as the Witham, Nene, Orwell, Stour, Fal, Torridge, Parrett, Severn, Dee, Clyde, Tay, Forth, Tyne, Tees
‘Commercial waterways’, as classified under s.104 of the Transport Act 1968,4 (about 564km)Mostly smaller waterways than above but some have significant freight potential for barge traffic and, in a few cases, for seagoing traffic. Comprise mainly non-tidal rivers and canals and generally can accommodate vessels of between 350 and 1000 tonnes payload, although a few are smaller.Aire & Calder Navigation
Calder & Hebble Navigation (part)
Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation and New Junction Canal
Gloucester & Sharpness Canal
Crinan Canal
Caledonian Canal
River Ouse (Yorkshire) (part)5, Trent (part), Lee, Severn and Weaver
Other waterways with significant freight potential (about 582km)Waterways with capacity for vessels carrying one hundred to several hundred tonnes.Rivers Hull, Ouse (Yorkshire) (part), Great Ouse system (part), Yare (part), Thames (part)
Grand Union Canal (part), Exeter Ship Canal, Forth & Clyde Canal
Smaller waterways (about 4710kmThese typically accommodate craft of less than 5m beam with capacity of less than 100 tonnes. Freight potential is generally limited to niche markets and retail operations, such as fuel merchants supplying direct to end users.These comprise the majority of the waterways managed by Canal & River Trust, the Environment Agency and the Broads Authority, along with some waterways managed by independent trusts, local authorities, internal drainage boards and private companies.

 

2.4. Lists of currently navigable waterways falling within each category are given in Appendix B.

2.5. Additional freight potential may be provided by the re-opening in the future of waterways that are not navigable at present6.

2.6. According to UK Government statistics, total traffic on the UK inland waterways network in 2009 amounted to 41.4 million tonnes lifted and total freight movement of 1.3 billion tonne-kilometres. Most of the traffic is on tidal inland waterways.

2.7. Traffic on the UK inland waterway system includes:

  • internal traffic with its origin, route and destination entirely within inland waters, usually carried by vessels only suitable for operation on inland waterways;
  • traffic entering inland waterways from sea in vessels from other UK ports and travelling inland;
  • traffic entering inland waterways to or from foreign coastal or inland ports or offshore operations and travelling inland.

2.8. Many types of cargo can be carried on inland waterways but costs of cargo handling influence competitiveness. Dry and liquid bulk cargoes are typically important as they can be loaded and discharged efficiently, although the increased use of containerisation means that, where waterways can accommodate vessels carrying containers, most types of goods can be carried competitively, including perishable goods requiring refrigeration.

2.9. With properly managed waterways, waterborne transport is as reliable as other modes and therefore suitable for the ‘just-in-time’ approach often adopted in modern supply chains.

2.10. UK Government policy on waterways is to encourage transfer of freight from road to water where this is practical, economic and environmentally desirable7 and to encourage effective use of the planning process to achieve this8. Government policy on ports9 recognises that coastal shipping and inland waterways may be viable for certain flows to and from ports and states that use of inland waterways for the movement of goods to and from the port should be considered.

3. Barriers

3.1. IWA considers that there is untapped potential for transfer of freight to inland waterways but that this is constrained in the UK by a number of barriers, including:

  • lack of appropriate continuing development of waterway infrastructure, for example, raising bridge headrooms to facilitate use of container barges
  • lack of operational experience in many types of industry, where transport managers are unfamiliar with processes, availability and costs, so rarely consider waterborne transport as an option;
  • lack of knowledge about water-freight operational issues in some navigation authorities;
  • inadequate promotion of waterborne freight as a modern transport mode;
  • lack of immediate availability of suitable vessels or trained crew in some cases;
  • a planning system that does not adequately take account of waterway freight transport infrastructure needs at national, regional or local levels;
  • the lack of co-ordination between Government departments on waterborne freight transport matters, where Defra is responsible for supporting waterways managed by the Canal and River Trust, the Environment Agency and the Broads Authority, the Department for Transport is responsible for shipping and freight grants and the Department of Communities and Local Government is responsible for planning.

3.2. Land availability and planning constraints continue to be a major constraint on development of inland waterway freight transport, especially in urban areas, where there is often pressure from planners and developers to use waterside sites for more lucrative housing developments and freight wharves are seen as bad-neighbour industries and a source of planning blight. Some wharves on the Thames have been safeguarded, such that there is a presumption for use for freight, and this approach is being considered in other areas

3.3. IWA policies set out below aim to remove such barriers and encourage modal shift of freight from road to water.

4. IWA Statement of Policy

IWA’s overall policy regarding freight use of waterways

4.1. IWA supports the use and development of freight carriage on UK inland waterways, where this is sustainable in economic, environment and social terms, as part of an integrated freight transport system in the UK and as an integral part of the European maritime and inland waterway network.

4.2. IWA will lobby waterway authorities to maintain waterways in suitable condition for modern freight carrying vessels where freight use is a real possibility, as appropriate to their status (see below), and to promote such use.

4.3. IWA believes in multi-functional use of waterways and supports the principle that freight waterways should be available for use by leisure craft (and vice versa), subject to appropriate management where necessary to ensure that such uses are compatible with safety and port security considerations.

4.4. IWA will lobby Government and planning authorities to consider waterway freight transport when planning freight transport infrastructure and locations of industrial development and freight terminals, where feasible and viable.

4.5. IWA supports the continuation of Government grants to encourage modal shift from road to water10 and believes that the Government department responsible for transport should also provide funding to assist Government supported navigation authorities to maintain and upgrade appropriate waterways for use by modern freight vessels.

4.6. IWA will seek to raise awareness of the opportunities for and advantages of waterborne freight transport on UK inland waterways, through lobbying, representation, waterway events and publications (see Appendix A for list of IWA freight publications) and will co-operate with other organisations involved in promoting freight use of waterways11.

Specific policies for the principal freight waterways

4.7. On the principal freight waterways, where the navigation authorities’ activities often relate mainly to seagoing traffic, IWA will press these authorities to market and facilitate opportunities for inland waterway carriage of freight, including publicising links to other inland waterways, where these are available.

4.8. IWA supports the continuing enhancement of waterway capacity and freight facilities to accommodate current and predicted developments in river-sea shipping practice.

4.9. Principal freight waterways, especially tidal waterways and those with tidal links, should be available 24 hours per day.

4.10. IWA supports the development and maintenance of inland terminals for freight, including containers, and will press navigation authorities and planners actively to support and facilitate such developments. Specific policies for Commercial Waterways designated under the 1968 Act

4.11. IWA will press for and support the Canal and River Trust, in partnership with others, in removing ‘pinch-points’ to achieve improvements in waterway capacity, where this will assist transfer of freight to water. In particular a programme of increasing bridge headroom should be a target where opportunities arise to accommodate vessels carrying containers.

4.12. IWA supports the development and maintenance of inland terminals for freight, including containerised traffic.

4.13. IWA believes that the duties under the1968 Act to make commercial waterways principally available for the carriage of freight and to accommodate freight vessels of specified dimensions should be retained where there are existing significant freight operations which are economically, socially and environmentally sustainable or where there are reasonable prospects for such operations in the future.

4.14. IWA accepts that circumstances change over time and that changes in waterway classification may thus be appropriate from time to time.

4.15. IWA believes that a structured working group including water freight stakeholders should be set up to review the existing classification of commercial waterways, to advise CRT on this issue and to advise the Secretary of State on the issues and options when proposals are received to reclassify a commercial waterway.

4.16. However, where the downgrading of a waterway from a ‘commercial waterway’ to a ‘cruising waterway’ under s.105 of the 1968 Act is proposed, IWA believes the following steps are necessary in most cases and may object to the proposed Order unless:

  • a full appraisal has been undertaken of current traffic and future traffic prospects, in the light of any Government financial incentives for freight to move from road to water to secure climate change or other environmental benefits; •
  • options for improving efficiency of the waterway operation and reducing costs, for example by modernisation of locks and centralised or automatic operation, have been fully considered and documented;
  • these considerations have been fully documented in the form of a benefit:cost analysis and made available to consultees;
  • operators have been fully consulted;
  • it appears to the IWA that these aspects are being taken into account by the Secretary of State;
  • in the opinion of the IWA, there are no longer any prospects of significant use of the waterway for freight traffic.

4.17. Where additional funding is required to maintain such waterways for freight traffic, this should be assisted by funding from the Government department responsible for transport.

4.18. IWA accepts that it may not always be practicable to maintain statutorily required depths on a commercial waterway that is not for the time being regularly navigated by deep-draughted vessels. In line with the Ombudsman’s report regarding a complaint from a carrier12, waterways should be maintained so that they can be put in order promptly when required.

4.19. Tidal commercial waterways and those with tidal links should be available 24 hours per day. Other freight waterways should be available 24 hours per day where traffic warrants it. Specific policies for other waterways with significant freight potential

4.20. IWA will support navigation authorities and other stakeholders in seeking opportunities for freight traffic.

4.21. IWA will support navigation authorities and partners in improving waterway capacity for freight, where there are realistic prospects of attracting freight traffic. Specific policies for smaller waterways

4.22. Many smaller waterways can support freight transport, including retail activities, in certain circumstances and IWA encourages such uses where these are sustainable.

4.23. As well as benefits in environmentally friendly transport, IWA recognises the benefits of freight traffic in encouraging retention of commercial vessels of heritage interest and the role of deeper draughted vessels in maintaining channel depth and identifying pinch points.

4.24. IWA will press navigation authorities when dredging to dredge to the full constructed channel profile and to remove pinch points where the original gauge has been compromised. IWA Policies applying to all freight waterways

4.25. In support of the freight use of inland waterways, IWA will press navigation authorities on waterways with freight traffic or freight potential to:

  • ensure provision of efficient operational track and, if underused for a period, ensure equipment is regularly exercised to maintain operability (for example to prevent accumulation of silt and rubbish behind lock gates);
  • publish widely the maximum vessel size accepted for each waterway and ensure that the waterway remains unobstructed for such vessels;
  • ensure that the waterway gauge does not become degraded, to remove pinch points that have arisen and to increase clearances where opportunities arise;
  • promote actively the use of their waterways for freight transport, in support of Government policy;
  • recognise that waterway carriers and shipping agents, should be regarded as primary customers of the freight waterway track provider, as well as the owner of the goods;
  • show a willingness to discuss traffic opportunities without preconceptions;
  • be willing to deal with the whole range of sizes and types of responsible operator;
  • provide a customer service contact regarding freight matters for freight users.

4.26. In support of the freight use of inland waterways, IWA will press navigation authorities on waterways with freight traffic to:

  • provide facilities for water supply and for disposal of sewage, garbage and oily waste that are accessible to freight vessels;
  • provide segregated layby facilities, suitable for use by freight vessels, at critical points such as at lock approaches, at overnight mooring locations or where needed on tidal waterways for vessels awaiting the tide; • provide water level and air draught gauges at appropriate locations;
  • provide adequate publicity of operating arrangements for both freight and leisure vessels;
  • inform freight vessel operators of and be transparent about any problems that may restrict availability of the waterway for freight use;
  • consult freight vessel operators regarding planned maintenance and refurbishment/ improvements to ensure appropriate provision for and minimum disruption of freight traffic during the works;
  • ensure that internal communication within the organisation is established so that the needs of both freight and leisure users are considered together.

4.27. IWA will oppose any development which might serve to restrict navigation by freight vessels, such as inappropriately located moorings, business barges or developments which restrict approaches to locks or bridges.

4.28. IWA will press Government and planning bodies to:

  • ensure retention of sufficient waterside land, with good land-based access, for provision of wharves and cargo handling facilities, in order to allow full development of the freight potential of the waterways;
  • take account of the freight potential of waterways in drawing up national policy statements and local development documents, in relation to allocation of waterside land for industry and for multi-modal freight facilities; • establish mechanisms for co-operation between Government departments on waterway freight issues.

4.29. IWA supports the principle of safeguarding of wharves for freight where there are realistic traffic prospects and the wharf is suitably located for modern cargo operations. In cases where the only facility in a locality suitable for freight vessel operations is located in an area where such use is no longer appropriate in planning terms and there is existing or potential future demand for such a facility, IWA will not object to its loss provided that arrangements are made for provision of an alternative freight wharf in a more suitable location.

4.30. IWA encourages review of the current waterborne freight grant regime from time to time by Government in light of developing initiatives to combat climate change.

4.31. IWA will assist in providing information and advice on safe navigation to leisure boaters using inland waterways also used by large freight vessels.

 

See the PDF version for full APPENDICES

Superscript Notes

¹Waterborne Freight in the United Kingdom. Department for Transport. Published annually.
²Researchers from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research presented estimates at the April 2006 Sea and Water conference which showed that moving freight by road produces emissions of 0.08 tonnes of carbon for every thousand freight tonne-kilometres. By comparison, it estimated that moving freight by water produces emissions of only 0.02 tonnes of carbon per thousand freight tonne-kilometres.
³Figures as tonne-kilometres from Waterborne freight in the United Kingdom. 2009. Published annually by the Department for Transport (DfT).
4These waterways will be managed by the Canal and River Trust from April 2012, who will have a duty to make them principally available for the carriage of freight and to maintain them to allow passage of vessels of defined sizes.
5Not listed in the 1968 Act but taken over by British Waterways from York City Council in 1989. The section from Hook to Selby is a statutory port.
6An example of a recently restored waterway where freight potential has been identified is the Forth and Clyde Canal.
7Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2000) Waterways for Tomorrow.
8Department for Transport and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2005) Planning For Freight on Inland Waterways. Report commissioned by the Association of Inland Navigation Authorities for DfT and Defra.
9Department for Transport (2011) National Policy Statement for Ports
10The modal shift revenue support (MSRS) grant scheme (as at 2011)
11Such organisations will include, for example, Freight by Water (the UK’s official body for the promotion of water freight – managed through the Freight Transport Association), CBOA (the Commercial Boat Operators’ Association), PIANC (the World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure) and ERSTU (the European River-Sea Transport Union.
12The Waterways Ombudsman (2007)Summary of Case No 181 – reluctance to give freight operator commitment to comply with statutory maintenance obligations. Report of the Waterways Ombudsman concerning complaint no. 181.

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