Support for ‘urgent’ lock repair work funding to avoid River Cam ‘catastrophe’

Funding of £500,000 for “urgent” repair work to Baits Bite Lock is one step closer to being secured. The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority has proposed to move money from a separate project to pay for the lock repair works instead.

The Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough , Paul Bristow (Conservative) said if the locks on the River Cam failed it would be a “catastrophe”. Many have raised concerns in recent months about the potential failure of some of the locks along the River Cam, after the Conservators of the River Cam issued an “organisation in crisis” update.

The group set out problems it faced getting the funding needed to maintain the ageing infrastructure along the river. The organisation is the statutory navigation authority for the River Cam between Bo