Foxton Locks Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
Foxton Locks are a staircase of ten canal locks located on the Grand Union Canal about five miles west of the Leicestershire town of Market Harborough and are named after the nearby village of Foxton.Staircase locks are used where a canal needs to climb a steep hill, and consist of groups of locks which open directly into each other. Foxton Locks are the largest flight of such staircase locks on the British canal system. Today, the locks are a popular tourist attraction.
In 1900 an inclined plane was built to the side of the locks in order to speed up the passage of boats. It was was designed by Gordon Cale Thomas and had 2 tanks or caissons, each capable of holding 2 narrowboats or a barge. The caissons were full of water, and so balanced each other. The lift was powered by a 25 horsepower (19 kW) stationary engine.
The inclined plane had a journey time of 12 minutes for 2 boats up and 2 down and improved the speed of passage up the hill tremendously. Unlike the locks, where water flowed downhill everytime a boat passed through, on the inclined plane the same amount of water went up and down the hill all day so a very big saving of water was achieved, giving better control of this precious resource.
The Foxton inclined plane proved uneconomic and was abandoned in 1911 although remains can still be seen. There is a campaign to raise funds to re-build it.Foxton inclined plane