Union Canal Breach

A collaborative effort: Responding to the Union Canal breach

Following a once in 240-year flash flooding event last August, Mackenzie Construction was contracted to emergency works at the site of an embankment breach on the Union Canal, near Muiravonside. The scale of the breach resulted in a 30m wide gap and a loss of around 75,000m3 from the canal. Once the emergency dams were put in place and the water flow stopped, the priority was to establish a safe site for the embankment repair and a programme of resilience works to futureproof the 200-year-old Union Canal against future climate change events. This involved the installation of a 600m long haul road to the remote breach location.

The first step of the repair and refurbishment works was to work with our design subcontractors to establish the cause of the breach and enable the development of an effective geotechnical and structural design that will strengthen and protect the canal, a listed structure, for years to come. This involved the installation of new weirs, culvert clearing and lining and lock stock improvements to create embankment resilience. As well as this, Smart Canal technology is being installed at 16 sites along the Union Canal involving weather sensors for water level management and automate the draining of the canal when heavy rainfall is anticipated. The canal network usually shuts down over winter for general upgrading works with a spring reopening date so there were time pressures on the project for the canal to be rewatered by early March. A collaborative relationship between the Mackenzie Construction team, our client Scottish Canals and our subcontractors facilitated clear lines of communication and a quick turnaround from the initial emergency works into a full refurbishment programme and canal reopening. Danny Brown, Site Agent on the project said:

“We’ve never seen a canal breach to this scale, so a huge effort was made by all teams, from the initial emergency response to stem the water flow and protect the surrounding areas right through to the repair and resilience works and canal rewatering. We hope to never see a breach to this scale again but if we do, we’ll be ready for it!”

Claypits project update

Our team at the Claypits have been busy progressing with the final stages of the regeneration project at the Claypits Local Nature Reserve. Following on from the successful opening of Garscube Bridge last Autumn, we have been working on further development of the path network and a new activity centre and bump cycle track. As part of the path development, we have now completed the Panmuir Gate elevated walkway and new timber boardwalk and Ellesmere Gate to Garscube Bridge which is all open to the public. We are now working on the last link path which will connect the local community of Maryhill to the Claypits and is due for completion early Summer 2021. Contracts Manager, Robbie MacLean said:

“We’ve had a great response from the public who have been utilising the spaces since the opening of the bridge. It’s clear to see the regeneration of the reserve will have a big impact on the local communities in North Glasgow and we’re proud to have been part of that.”

May 2021 marks 20 years since the reopening of Scotland’s historic canals. As a key supply partner to Scottish Canals since 2015, Mackenzie Construction is proud to be celebrating this milestone anniversary having played a role in many of the key canal regeneration projects over the years. We look back on some of the project highlights from the past six years.

Fort Augustus and Kytra Lock Replacement

Our project replacing the giant lock gates at Fort Augustus and Kytra on the Caledonian Canal saw Mackenzie Construction and Scottish Canals win the prestigious Scottish Civil Engineering Award for Heritage and Restoration in 2019. Opened in 1822, with repairs and improvements made in the 1840s, the Caledonian Canal was built to designs made by famous Scottish engineer Thomas Telford. It took twelve years to construct and the waterway’s 60 miles (96.5km) length includes lochs Ness, Oich and Lochy and 22 miles (35km) of canal with 29 locks. The project itself was no small task as it involved draining a 7,293m (23,927ft) long section of the Caledonian Canal in a process called dewatering, which involved closing some lock gates and locking them closed for the duration of the project.

The Bowline

Works at Bowling Harbour will see the redevelopment of the former railway viaduct into the ‘Bowline’ a fully accessible linear park and pathway inspired by New York City’s High Line. Linking in to the Forth & Clyde Canal towpath and the National Cycle Network route, the Bowline is being developed to be fully accessible for all users and will transform the space for local people and businesses. As Principal Contractor, Mackenzie Construction has been involved in the project since 2018, initially undertaking refurbishment works to the canal swing bridge at Bowling Harbour and then a further refurbishment project to the Dumbarton road bridge. This then developed into the Bowline project which commenced in Spring 2020. Since then, we have had a great response from the public on the project progression and reached a milestone moment with the installation of a 40m steel ramp at the beginning of the year. We are now working towards the full opening of the pathway, scheduled for late summer 2021.