Waterways Ireland’s proposed new moorings on Lough Erne. Note that the links at the bottom of the page [which do not include this or this] are to PDFs.
The “heaviest cruisers”, eh? Hmph. And “egress” is not the mot juste. But let us not carp: perhaps the idea will, in time, be applied on some southron waterways too.
Posted in Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Foreign parts, Ireland, Irish inland waterways vessels, Natural heritage, Operations, Safety, Scenery, Sources, Tourism, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management
Tagged boats, buoy, Erne, Ireland, mooring, Operations, vessels, waterways, Waterways Ireland
The European Commission is taking the UK government to court because it
… does not require fuel distributors to have two separate fuel tanks to distinguish between the lower tax marked fuel and the fuel subject to the standard rate.
As a result, owners of pleasure craft sometimes (poor dears) find themselves with no choice but to buy red diesel and they may not pay the right amount of tax, which is no doubt a cause of great sadness to them.
As I (and the Irish Examiner) reported some time ago, the Commission is also coming after Ireland’s ludicrous arrangement. Ireland was to respond to the Reasoned Opinion by 16 June 2014; the Revenue Commissioners have not told me how (or indeed whether) they responded.
Posted in Economic activities, Extant waterways, Foreign parts, Ireland, Irish inland waterways vessels, Non-waterway, Operations, People, Politics, Sea, Sources, Tourism, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management
Tagged boats, European Commission, green diesel, Ireland, marked gas oil, mineral oil tax, Operations, red diesel, UK, waterways
T W Freeman “Tullamore and its environs, Co Offaly” in Irish Geography (Bulletin of the Geographical Society of Ireland) Vol 1 No 5 1948 (based on material collected in 1947):
The original geographical advantage lay in the canal, which placed it on the main line from Dublin to Limerick around 1800, but canal traffic, though still important, is no longer crucial.
However …
Social activities in Tullamore include a wide range of clubs for athletics, dances, bridge, a modern cinema, and the occasional extra shows and matches that mean so much to the people of a country town and its surroundings. On the athletic side the new swimming pool is the most attractive recent addition (but no mixed bathing) ….
Posted in Ashore, Built heritage, Canals, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Industrial heritage, Ireland, Operations, People, Politics, Sources, Water sports activities, waterways
Tagged Dublin, Grand Canal, Ireland, Limerick, mixed bathing, Operations, swimming pool, Tullamore, waterways
Waterways Ireland has no staff on temporary contracts but has 32 on seasonal contracts.
Posted in Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Foreign parts, Ireland, Irish waterways general, Operations, People, Politics, Safety, Shannon, Sources, Tourism, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management
Tagged department of arts heritage and the gaeltacht, employees, Ireland, Operations, seasonal, staff, temporary, Waterways Ireland
Two reports from Dr William O’Connor about fish on the Brosna here at Clara and here at Belmont. Both are mill sites, now generating electricity, and the difficulty lies in providing for fish to get past.
Posted in Built heritage, Drainage, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Industrial heritage, Ireland, Irish waterways general, Natural heritage, Non-waterway, Operations, People, Politics, Restoration and rebuilding, Scenery, Shannon, Sources, The fishing trade, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management
Tagged Belmont, Brosna, Clara, eels, hydroelectricity, mill, salmon
Leitrim Observer story here.
If Carrick is being reviewed, I presume other offices are too. I’m sure Scarriff is lovely, but ….
It seems that at least some folk are beginning to realise how bad Waterways Ireland’s financial position and prospects really are.
… is screwed.
That is my interpretation [and not, I should stress, to be attributed to the report’s authors, sponsors or supporters] of the results of the June 2014 report Ireland’s Inland Waterways – Review & Outlook prepared by Tourism & Transport Consult International for the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation “with support from the Irish Boat Rental Association (IBRA)” and downloadable here [PDF].
The report is well worth reading. I’ve been charting the decline in the cruiser hire industry, as indicated by Shannon lock passages, for some time now; a source within the industry told me recently that the decline was actually worse than those figures indicated. The report shows that the IBRA fleet size went from 388 in 1992 to a peak of 533 in 1997 but down to 225 in 2013.
The fleet refinancing problems look to be horrific and it doesn’t seem to me that more marketing (if marketing is taken to be Promotion rather than any of the other Ps) is going to be enough: another P, Product, needs to be redefined rather more usefully than in Tourism Ireland’s segmentation waffle about “Great Escapers” and the “Culturally Curious”. Tourism is good for waterways, but products other than (or as well as) straightforward cruising need to be offered.
And consider this:
Over the past 10 years upwards of €200 million in state expenditure has been invested in upgrading infrastructural facilities along the waterways. The investment has helped to transform the quality and quantity of moorings, navigational aids, signposting. Mooring capacity has been doubled over the period as well as the developments of several integrated harbors including berths with associated on-shore facilities including toilet and shower blocks, picnic and play areas, looped walks, etc. Such developments have taken place at locations on the Shannon and Grand Canal, including Boyle, Clondara, and Killaloe.
No wonder WI’s budget is being cut, if €200 million went to subsidising the Irish bourgeoisie rather than to bringing in more tourists. Of course if the Clones Sheugh were reconstructed tourists would come flocking from Germany, Austria and Switzerland: indeed from all around the world.
And the report says of the Lakelands and Inland Waterways Initiative, about which I have expressed scepticism,
The relevance of the well intentioned initiative and proposed branding to the cruising business was diluted by the large area encompassed by the new regional initiative and the less than adequate resources invested in effective marketing in key source markets. Unfortunately the results of the marketing effort do not appear to have raised the profile of Shannon and linked waterways.
I did think it odd that Abbeyleix got funding ….
This report is a very welcome dose of realism. I want to give it more thought before commenting on individual points, so I’ll come back to it again, but in the meantime I urge everyone to read it (it’s pretty short).
h/t Antoin Daltún
[amended]
Posted in Built heritage, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Industrial heritage, Ireland, Irish inland waterways vessels, Natural heritage, Operations, People, Politics, Restoration and rebuilding, Safety, Scenery, Shannon, Sources, Tourism, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management, Weather
Tagged boats, Clones, department of arts heritage and the gaeltacht, Erne, Grand Canal, Ireland, Lough Derg, Operations, Royal Canal, Shannon, Shannon-Erne Waterway, Ulster Canal, waterways, Waterways Ireland
Carál Ní Chuilín [SF], NI’s waterways minister, said the other day:
Waterways Ireland’s inspectorate is responsible for enforcing the Lough Erne by-laws, which include speeding. Jet skis and boats are asked to carry registration numbers, which are issued by Waterways Ireland. I know, because a report was given, that any complaints are very robustly followed up. I also acknowledge that, since the Lough Erne by-laws were introduced in 1978, the numbers of vessels and the popularity of Lough Erne have grown. I also know that Waterways Ireland is planning to amend the Lough Erne by-laws, and these changes include proposals to create no-wash areas and minimise the risk of high-speed collisions, particularly with some of the larger seagoing vessels.
I didn’t know there were seagoing vessels on the Erne, but apart from that the revised bye-laws sound like good news, especially with no-wash areas, and I presume that they will be introduced on the Shannon too.
The only question to be resolved is whether Waterways Ireland would be better using helicopter gunships or missile-carrying drones to enforce the zones.
Posted in Extant waterways, Foreign parts, Ireland, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, Politics, Safety, Sea, Shannon, Sources, Tourism, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management
Tagged boats, drone, Erne, helicopter gunship, Ireland, jetski, Operations, Shannon, waterways, Waterways Ireland
I am grateful to Waterways Ireland for letting me have copies of the recorded numbers of boat passages through Shannon locks and Portumna Bridge for the first five months of 2014. All the usual caveats apply:
On the other hand, the figures do include the Shannon’s most significant tourism activity, the cruiser hire business. And they are our only consistent long-term indicator of usage of the inland waterways.
The total amount of traffic continues to decline.
Private-boat traffic is still below its average for the period but increased slightly on the same period of the previous year [but see the third caveat above].
Hire-boat traffic is just over one third of its 2003 level.
Since 2003, both private and hired traffic have fallen, from the highest figures attained within the period, by about 60% of the 2003 figure. But private traffic first rose by 40% of the 2003 figure, so it is now only about 20% below that figure. Hire traffic has fallen pretty consistently since 2003.
Hire traffic is usually greater than private traffic between April and October (roughly speaking), but the gap is closing.
Carál Ní Chuilín, NI’s [SF] waterways minister, said the other day:
Waterways Ireland delivered a presentation to Ministers entitled ‘Ireland’s Inland Waterways — Building a Tourism Destination’. The presentation provided an overview of the progress that Waterways Ireland is making in placing waterways and the waterway experience at the centre of the tourism offering in Ireland and internationally.
And a good thing too, but the waterways need new water-based tourism products to complement, and perhaps to replace some of, the hire-boat cruising business. Opening new waterways — Royal Canal, Longford Branch, Ulster Canal, Kilbeggan Branch or anything else — is a waste of money until demand, domestic and visitor, private and hired, exceeds existing capacity.
Posted in Built heritage, Canals, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Foreign parts, Ireland, Irish inland waterways vessels, Irish waterways general, Operations, People, Politics, Restoration and rebuilding, Scenery, Shannon, Sources, Tourism, Ulster Canal, Water sports activities, waterways, Waterways management, Weather
Tagged barge, Barrow, boat hire, boats, bridge, canal, Clones, cruiser, department of arts heritage and the gaeltacht, Erne, Grand Canal, hire boat, IBRA, Ireland, lock, Operations, Portumna, private boat, product, Royal Canal, Shannon, tourism, traffic, Ulster Canal, vessels, waterways, Waterways Ireland
Irish waterways history 