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Foxton Inclined Plane is on the Grand Union Canal and by 1897, the Grand Junction Canal Company had acquired several of the canals comprising the Leicester line, and was keen to meet demand from carriers seeking to use wider beam 14ft (4.27m) craft, rather than the traditional narrow beam boats, which were the only type the locks could accommodate. Their solution was to build an inclined plane to the side of the locks. It had two caissons (tanks) each capable of holding 2 narrowboats or a barge. The caissons were full of water and counterbalanced each other, and having guillotine gates to give a watertight seal. The lift was pwered by a stationary steam engine. |
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