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<\/a><\/a>Town Lane to Walton Summit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Almost all of the cut between Town Lane at Whittle-le-Woods and Walton Summit was filled by rubble from the construction of the M61 motorway. Through lack of use and the significant cost of constructing bridges and tunnels to accommodate the motorway, it was decided in the 1960s to close this section of the canal. Only a few very short sections of the cut are visible along with the remains of a few bridges and basins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The two Whittle Tunnels and Moss Bridge can still be found in good condition at Whittle-le-Woods. Summit Bridge and White Bridge stand in isolation in woods close to Walton Summit and can be accessed by a footpath that runs under the M61 motorway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Footpaths can now be walked that follow the line of the cutting as we head north from Whittle Tunnels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following the former canal cutting as it passes between Brindle and Clayton Brook on its way to Walton Summit we come across the sites of White Bridge and Summit Bridge. White Bridge has been removed and replaced by a grass bank crossing the cutting. Summit Bridge stands isolated in woodland and crosses a muddy ditch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At Walton Summit the canal came to an abrupt stop. No simple solution of how to cross the river Ribble at Preston was known so as a temporary measure a tram road was laid allowing cargo to be hauled between Walton Summit and the basin in Corporation Street in Preston. The tram road crossed the river Ribble on a trestle bridge and was then winched up the steep bank in what is now Avenham Park. Bridges and tunnels then connected to Preston Basin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Signs of the tram road can still be found at Walton Summit, in Preston city centre, and near to Walton-le-Dale where the course of the tram road is used as a footpath. Until 2026 a large trestle bridge crossed the River Ribble in Avenham Park, but was unsafe so a modern bridge has been built to replace this. It has retained the name Tram Bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two very small sections of the tram road were excavated in Bamber Bridge and have been preserved at Worden Park in Leyland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The basin at Preston was built on land to the north-east of Preston Central Station. The cut has now been filled as far as Preston Terminus at Maudlands which is about a mile to the north-west. The route of cut can still be followed on foot where some of the original buildings and bridges can still be seen. The basin site is currently occupied by the car park to the south of Abakhan and Poundstretcher. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>Walton Summit to Preston Basin<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Tram Road<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/a>The Northern Cutting<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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