Closing canals like cutting of a motorway, marina owner says | Manchester News

The ongoing closure of canal locks in the North West is causing “very severe problems” for businesses who rely on the canals, one company has said.

A number of locks have been closed for weeks on waterways in Greater Manchester due to water shortages after a drought was declared across the wider region.

Guy Holding of Portland Basin Marina in Ashton-under-Lyne, said the effect was like “a motorway that’s had two ends of it cut off”, and boats cannot move, which “massively” disrupting his business.

The Canal and River Trust has said the closures were necessary due to the pressure on reservoirs caused by the lack of rainfall.

United Utilities has also raised concerns about reservoir levels with water levels in the region below the average for the time of year.

Mr Holding’s business includes a site for moorings in Droylsden and the marina in Ashton-under-Lyne where three canals meet; the Ashton canal, the Huddersfield canal and the Macclesfield canal.

All three have been subject to lock closures, and Mr Holding said this means customers cannot access his site, which he described as similar to a motorway service station.

“People come in for gas, have their toilets pumped out, we do repairs, and nobody can get to us and nobody can get out,” he told North West Tonight.

“The reality is this is the key season, it’s the six weeks’ holidays.”

Matthew Symonds from the Canal and River Trust said: “We know how disappointing the current restrictions are.

“As soon as water levels allow, we’ll get the canals back open and remain grateful to boaters for their support and patience.”

Mr Holding said his marina was a major hub for inland waterways and it had effectively been “completely closed down”.

He said the situation was “pretty catastrophic”.

• Ashton Canal from lock 1 in Manchester city centre to lock 18 in Droylsden
• Rochdale Canal from lock 92 in Manchester city centre to lock 48 in Littleborough
• The Marple and Bosley lock flights on the Peak Forest Canal
• The Huddersfield Canal from lock 1 West in Ashton-under-Lyne to lock 1 East in Huddersfield, Yorkshire.

The restrictions come as low levels of rainfall have caused water supplies to dwindle in the region’s reservoirs.

Statistics from United Utilities show that as of 10 August 2025, its reservoirs were 57.2% full, down from 75.4% for the same period last year.

A greater impact can be seen at the Pennine Sources reservoirs where water levels are currently at 37.9%, down from 70.1% last year.