The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift in Scotland, connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal. The lift, named after the nearby town of Falkirk in central Scotland, opened in 2002. It reconnects the two canals for the first time since the 1930s as part of the Millennium Link project.
The plan to regenerate central Scotland’s canals and reconnect Glasgow with Edinburgh was led by British Waterways with support and funding from seven local authorities, the Scottish EnterpriseNetwork, the European Regional Development Fund, and the Millennium Commission. Planners decided early on to create a dramatic 21st-century landmark structure to reconnect the canals, instead of simply recreating the historic lock flight.
The wheel raises boats by 24 metres (79 ft), but the Union Canal is still 11 metres (36 ft) higher than the aqueduct which meets the wheel. Boats must also pass through a pair of locks between the top of the wheel and the Union Canal. The Falkirk Wheel is the only rotating boat lift of its kind in the world, and one of two working boat lifts in the United Kingdom, the other being the Anderton boat lift.
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That’s just incredible! Thanks for a fascinating look…it would have made a good
Where in the World puzzle, or What in the World…
I found this animated GIF by Famine on Wikipedia that helped me visualize how it looks in operation. It’s put together from a time-laps series.
Technology and art! Fascinating yet functional.
My darling father-in-law grew up in Falkirk and I’ve never gone there. But just mention a canal and I want to know about the towpath. A walk through Falkirk may be in my future:http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk…de-union-canal.shtmlThanks, Ian.
Wow!
A marvel of engineering. I never cease to be amazed at how clever people can ber.