Gas Street Basin, Birmingham

Gas Street Basin is the Birmingham end of the Worcester and Birmingham canal. It is now surrounded by pubs and restaurants rather than warehouses, but still filled with colourful traditional narrowboats. The influential Birmingham Canal did not like competitors so it obtained an Act of Parliament to prevent the Worcester and Birmingham connecting to it. Goods had to be transshipped from one boat to another across the ‘Worcester Bar’. This was finally pierced by a stop lock in 1815 so that boats could pass.

Where is it?