As many of you know, when the CRT first proposed the full details of the Water “Safety” Zones, we calculated that 550 mooring spaces would be lost in Broxbourne and Tottenham/Hackney. In some places the CRT also proposed introducing a ban on double mooring and wider boats. Following the magnificent efforts of the boating community to push back against these “Safety” Zones, CRT initially appeared to desist from their implementation, in favour of a navigation forum of stakeholders. Unfortunately the CRT are still attempting to impose potentially the most draconian part of the original “Safety” Zones outline – the new no mooring sections. We now estimate that 295 casual mooring opportunities are at risk. 

In October of last year the CRT lied to us by stating that they were putting the safety zones on hold, pending a discussion within the Lea Navigation Forum meeting. However, before the first Forum meeting had taken place, the CRT had already installed no mooring signs on most of the ‘no mooring’ sites on their Water Safety Zone map. We (NBTA London) brought this dishonest behaviour to the attention of the Lee Navigation Forum. CRT’s response was to disregard the dishonesty of their own actions which undermined the whole Lee Navigation Consultation. We asked for reasoning from CRT to why each of the no mooring spaces were made as such. CRT didn’t provide this. We then provided a document stating our opinion of each no mooring site at the very next meeting. More than half a year later CRT have yet to give a proper response.

During that half year, boaters moored in places that are perfectly reasonable and safe have continued to receive unjustified threats from CRT. In total, CRT paid £24,840 from October – January to a car parking company called District Enforcement (DE) to attempt to implore our community not to moor on these sites. Thankfully people continue to moor in these places in large numbers. CRT stated that on January 10th the enforcement of the no mooring zones would begin. During this time we began the process of taking the CRT to court in a Judicial Review. While notices and emails to desist were sent to boaters, hundreds remained defiant, many staying up to 14 days before being replaced by another resistant boater. In the CRT notices left by DE they state that the boater is moored contrary to British Waterways Acts, Bye-laws, Conditions, Guidance etc. To investigate what kind of legal standing CRT thinks they have, our solicitors asked them to qualify which specific Acts and Bye-laws relate to the no mooring sites. Even when asked again by the solicitors, CRT failed to provide any Acts or Bye-laws to support their stance. They were unable to provide these because the CRT has no actual legal leg to stand on.

Our caseworkers have been providing boaters with replies to CRT enforcement letters around the clock. In response, CRT responses have been weak and deflective. After one particular email exchange where we sought to clarify the CRT’s stance in relation to the law, the officer ended one of their email with: “Anyway, I’ll leave it there for now. Feel free to get back to me if you have any other
questions I won’t be able to give a straight answer to.” This elusiveness hasn’t been exclusive to the legal side of the campaign, CRT’s public relations efforts regarding the matter are much the same. We have been successful in getting this campaign into wide range of press outlets. The CRT’s defensiveness includes refusing to quantify how many mooring spaces are at risk. Additionally, CRT have also spread untruths to the press, making ridiculous public statements such as, ‘enforcing no mooring sites does not have a negative impact on our community.’  

The boating community are continuing to resist the implementation of the ‘no moorings’ in the safety zones, yet CRT continues to waste money trying stop the resistance. CRT can only afford to waste so much money and incur so much bad press before they are forced to defer to our position on these ‘no mooring’ spaces. However for CRT to back down it will take our community’s continued resistance until CRT does.

Brief update (08.06.2022):

CRT have responded to the NBTA’s document outlining our position on the “red zones no mooring sites within the safety zones”. They have announced a reduction of no mooring restriction by a total of 157 metres. These include near or under pedestrian bridges and a few other places, often just an extra metre here or there. You can read CRT’s full response here

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Join us at our Community Summer event at the end of this month. We are having a picnic at the Walthamstow Marshes on Sunday 26th June 2022 – 12pm start. Click here for more details