Visitor attraction involving a tunnel trip. Officially opened on the 1st May 2001.
Work has involved repairing the Grade II listed canal warehouse opening up the canal arm within the building, creation of a ticket booth, shop, interpretative exhibition on the ground and first floors and boat boarding module on the ground floor. Once open, a half-hour tunnel trip will operate starting from inside the building using a specially built electric tug and passenger module. The displays will explain the development of the canal system and the importance of Standedge in the context of transport across the Pennines through the ages, the construction of the canal and its restoration and aspects of local history and environment. A charge will be made for entry to the exhibition which will include the tunnel trip.
Refurbishment work started on site in late August 2000
The Grade II listed warehouse at Tunnel end Marsden is surrounded in scaffolding as work gets underway on re-roofing of the front half of the building.
Roof tiles being relaid on the southern half of the warehouse. Heritage style rooflights have been installed to optimise the usable space on the second floor.
On the first floor, new joist ends have been spliced into place and the stone work has been cleaned.
A boat lift has been installed in the original canal arm within the warehouse. Using syncronised jacks a cradle will lift the trip boat out of the water and bring it to the floor level to permit access by passengers. Here the lift is being constructed.
The original entry to the canal arm is being rebuilt using reinforced concrete walls faced by stone.
British Waterways' tug boats outside the new Visitor Centre at Marsden. The Canal Society's passenger butty 'Pioneer', on temporary loan to the Centre, waits to take visitors into the tunnel.
At the opening of the Visitor Centre.
British Waterways has separately invested in Tunnel End Cottages to provide a cafe restaurant facility which will complement the Visitor Centre.
Owing to the unique nature of the site and the limited road access, it is intended that car borne visitors will park at Marsden goods yard and enter the attraction using the Canal Society trip-boat or on foot along the towpath.
For the latest information about the Visitor Centre and tunnel trips visit www.standedge.co.uk
