Canal litter busting
Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - Litter Busting
Nested neatly within Gravelly Hill and Pype Hayes wards is a 3.5 mile section of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - between Salford Junction in the west, and Minworth lock in the east, there are 14 road or foot bridges, and 2 locks.
Erdington Litter Busters has recently begun regular litter picks on the canal, from Hansons Bridge in the east. We have also now successfully adopted the canal between "Roving Bridge 110" (near Salford Circus) and Tyburn Bridge (Chester Road) - this means we have the approval and support of Canal and River Trust.
The canal begins in Birmingham city centre, at Old Turn Junction near to Sea Life Centre and NIA, and ends at Fazeley Junction near Tamworth. In total, it is 15 miles long and has 38 locks.
Like many other canals in the city, past and present industry have marked the landscape of Gravelly Hill and Pype Hayes in many ways, but has retained, in this section of canal, an excellent resource and opportunity for health, well-being and sport.
Many parts of the canal are frequently used by cyclists, joggers and runners as well as the general public for reaching from A to B 😊 .
Flythrough - from Salford Circus to Minworth Lock 2 - its easy ! - launch web-version of Google Earth, then click on "Present" and ">" to forward in 3D between each bridge / feature - click here to start the presentation
Below are some of the photos taken during our regular litter picks, during which we often start or end at a nearby cafe or green space.
For transport buffs, there is no better location to view and experience several modes of transport in one location than “Spaghetti Junction”.
Here, there are 3 forms of transport in close proximity – the rail service (north from Aston to Lichfield), 3 canals (Birmingham and Fazeley, Tame Valley and Digbeth Branch), the River Tame, and, of course, M6 motorway and several A roads joining it.
3.5 miles east, the canal runs parallel to A38 Kingsbury Road and has two of Minworth’s three locks – Minworth Lock and Minworth Top Lock.
For anyone interested in walking the whole 3.5 miles, here are some links for you – OS Maps (has Fly-through function) and Plot-a-route – both starting from Salford Circus.
Pedestrian Access from Lichfield Road, Saltley Cottages, Bromford Lane, Wood Lane, Holly Lane, Kingsbury Road, Egerton Road, Chester Road, Tyburn Road and Hansons Bridge Road
Sorrel Park, Pype Hayes
Between Tyburn Road and Kingsbury Road, just north of the canal can be found Sorrel Park. A small park with play area. For more information, take a look at the Friends of Sorrel Park’ on Facebook
